The U.S. Power Sector: The Evolution from Regulation to Competitive Markets

This course will discuss the evolution of the U.S. power sector from the development of the first centralized power plant in the U.S. (by Thomas Edison in lower Manhattan) in the 1880s, through the inception of state regulation of the industry in the early 20th century and the passage of major federal legislation in the 1930s.  It will address the vertically-integrated public utilities that dominated the industry throughout the 20th century, through the reforms caused by the U.S. energy crisis in the 1970s.  It will give an overview of the evolution of competition in the sector from the 1980s until today.  The course will also address how power is bought and sold in the U.S., and identify regulatory and market issues involved in the energy transition, including the development of small- and large-scale renewables and battery storage, the advent of data center corridors straining the grid, and barriers to transmission infrastructure.

Learning Objectives:

1. Review the division of authority between the States (acting through their public utility commissions) and the federal government (acting through the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission) over the U.S. power sector 
2. Discuss why and how the U.S. power sector has evolved over the past 30 years from a fully-regulated industry to an industry characterized by significant competition
3. Examine how the regional wholesale power markets operate and how power is bought and sold both in those markets and through bilateral power sale agreements
4. Identify regulatory and market issues involved in the energy transition, including the development of small- and large-scale renewables and battery storage, the advent of data center corridors straining the grid, and barriers to transmission infrastructure