Shaping the Global Arena: Preparing the EU Emissions Trading Scheme for the post-2012 Period. CEPS Task Force Reports No. 61, 6 March 2007

Having been underway for more than two years, the review of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) is entering a decisive phase with the European Commission’s recent announcement that it will table formal proposals in the second half of 2007. Based on an assessment of the EU ETS, this new CEPS Task Force Report tests the performance of four different design models (a cap-and-trade system based on free allocation, benchmarks, auctioning and a credit-and-baseline system) against 10 criteria under three headings: environmental effectiveness, economic efficiency and the contribution of the ETS to achieving long-term climate change policy objectives. Based on this assessment, the report makes a number of recommendations in the area of allocation, creation of investment incentives and the merits of including new sectors and new gases. The report also addresses the particular challenge of completing the EU ETS review before a global post-2012 agreement can be reached, i.e. the EU ETS will be reviewed against an unknown global context

Optimization Under Uncertainty in Building Energy Management

The introduction of decentralized energy resources as well as energy storage systems to the energy system calls for new control and coordination mechanisms and systems. This is also true for buildings. An optimized operation of buildings comprising decentralized generation and energy storage systems can be achieved by a building energy management system. It controls and coordinates the operation of individual devices in a building\u27s energy system to achieve given goals, such as the increase of energy efficiency, the decrease of carbon emissions, the minimization of operating costs or the provision of demand response measures. This thesis picks up on this idea and extends the ongoing research by presenting an approach to the optimized operation of building energy systems that includes the uncertainties in the predictions of the future energy generation and consumption into the control scheme of a building energy management system. To do so, this thesis identified the use of a scenario-based consideration of the uncertainties to be best suited. The presented approach uses a rolling horizon optimization approach with a stochastic two-stage optimization problem, which considers several forecast scenarios in the optimization

Integration of DERs on power systems: challenges and opportunities

The integration of large amounts of distributed energy resources (DERs) as photovoltaic solar generation, micro-cogeneration, electric vehicles, distributed storage or demand response pose new challenges and opportunities on the power sector. In this paper, we review the current trends on: i) how consumers adopting DERs can self-provide energy services and provide other services at system level, ii) what can be expected at distribution networks and how retail markets will evolve with more proactive and market engaged consumers, iii) what are the effects and integration of DERs on wholesale markets, and iv) what are the challenges that DERs pose on cybersecurity and the opportunities for improving system resilience. Several recommendations are given for achieving an efficient integration of DERs. For instance, the design of a comprehensive system of prices and charges and the elimination of existing barriers for market participation are crucial reforms to achieve a level playing field between distributed and centralized resources when providing electricity services. This paper summarizes part of the work developed under the MIT Utility of the Future study

Emerging Business Models for Local Distribution Companies in Ontario

Local Distribution Companies (LDCs) have the potential to be leaders in coordinating and stewarding a Sustainable Energy Transition (SET) in Ontario. However, under the current LCD business model structure, LDCs are unable to capture the benefits from sustainable energy and advance a sustainable energy transition. Separately from LDC operations, sustainable energy is disrupting the electricity system through the proliferation of Distributed Energy Resources, Information and Communication Technology occurring Behind the Meter (BTM). The adoption of BTM applications erodes LDC profitability and threatens their existence. The pushing force from an outdated LDC business model compounded with the pulling force from disruptive sustainable technology has created an opportunity for LDCs to innovate their business model in order to adapt to the changing energy paradigm of the 21st century. This paper explores and evaluates seven emerging LDC business models used in Ontario and provides a recommendation of a possible pathway for a viable LDC business model that can leverage sustainable energy while maintaining the electrical grid infrastructure