Reliability information in a competitive market

As the electric power industry continues to evolve, more industry participants will have a broader array of decisions and options relating to reliability. Regulatory commissions monitor reliability to assure an acceptable level of reliability and the proper functioning of markets. The North American Electric Reliability Council and the Canadian Electrical Association have long histories of collecting reliability data. Most of these data are held confidential. Some summary statistics are made public, but the industry´s willingness to participate in these efforts is diminishing. State and provincial regulatory commissions are collecting other data. This panel addresses the future reliability information needs of the industry, mechanisms for obtaining and disseminating this information and various issues surrounding this information. The panel covers equipment and system reliability data in Canada, US utility reliability data, NERC´s Generating Availability Data System, and a European perspective is also given