Staying ahead of the curve by staying on top of industry data
Keeping data current, and applicable to your modeling needs, is not a simple task. It is a known theme within the power industry to expect that as soon as you input data, there will be a need for another update. Much of this has to do with today’s markets being much more transparent than in previous years and more data being available than ever before. Deregulation has played a large role in this transformation; with its need for open markets and transparent pricing came the introduction of a slew of new market products.
Fifty years ago when deregulation began, what are now fundamental market drivers (e.g. sub-hourly, capacity auctions, demand response, energy efficiency, etc.) were unheard of at that time. The rise of various market data available can be attributed in part to deregulation, or simply to the evolution of technology and the markets. Couple this with the increase in computing speed, server technology advancements, and society’s current “instant gratification” attitude, and you have an industry that demands the right data right now. The growth of available data inputs has led to the need for checks and balances and transparency to the underlying fundamentals. There are a lot more moving parts in today’s power industry which culminates to where we are today: professionals with an enormous amount of data to keep up with and incorporate into simulation models.
In an effort to help integrate posted data in a timely fashion, EPIS has summarized some of the major release dates for data across the U.S., that when considered as a whole, can help your annual planning. The data releases below are grouped by subject type and then further color coded by region. Depending on your modeling needs (large region, day-ahead, capacity expansion, nodal, etc.) you will care about different data releases. However, making sure the data is available when you need it is a significant part of the process that applies across all modeling endeavors.
Figure 1: Some of the key market data releases and the time frame they are typically available
An Excel version of this information is also available for download from our website. When you filter by region you can see a clearer picture of data availability and start to form regional timelines for your own updates based on the available data.
In today’s transparent power markets, staying current can be a difficult task. Knowing when the data is available is an important first step to planning your update schedules in order to most effectively forecast power markets.