U.S. patent application number 10/062798 was filed with the patent office on 2003-01-30 for bidding for energy supply.
This patent application is currently assigned to Johnson , Jack J.. Invention is credited to Coyle , William F., Johnson , Jack J..
Application Number | 20030023540 10/062798 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 24163890 |
Filed Date | 2003-01-30 |
United States Patent
Application |
20030023540 |
Kind Code |
A2 |
Johnson , Jack J. ; et
al. |
January 30, 2003 |
Bidding for Energy Supply
Abstract
An auction service is provided that stimulates competition
between energy suppliers (i.e., electric power or natural gas). A
bidding moderator (Moderator) receives offers from competing
suppliers specifying the economic terms each is willing to offer to
end users for estimated quantities of electric power or gas supply
(separate auctions). Each supplier receives feedback from the
Moderator based on competitors" offers and has the opportunity to
adjust its own offers down or up, depending on whether it wants to
encourage or discourage additional energy delivery commitments in a
particular geographic area or to a particular customer group. Each
supplier"s offers can also be changed to reflect each supplier"s
capacity utilization. The Moderator selects at least two suppliers
to provide energy to each end user, with each supplier providing a
portion of the energy to be used by each end user at an end-user
facility during a specific future time interval.
Inventors: |
Johnson , Jack J.; ( Summit,
NJ) ; Coyle , William F.; ( Summit, NJ) |
Correspondence
Address: |
Mr. Jack J. Johnson
Mr. William F. Coyle
158 Chateau Thierry Avenue
Madison
NJ
07940
US
johnsonx@bellatlantic.net
973-410-1500
973-410-1511
|
Assignee: |
Johnson , Jack J.
Geophonic Networks, Inc.
158 Chateau Thierry Avenue johnsonx@bellatlantic.net
973-410-1500 973-410-1511
Madison
07940
NJ
|
Prior
Publication: |
|
Document Identifier |
Publication Date |
|
US 0091626 A1 |
July 11, 2002 |
|
|
Family ID: |
24163890 |
Appl. No.: |
10/062798 |
Filed: |
January 31, 2002 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
10062798 |
Jan 31, 2002 |
|
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09/542,451 |
200 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
705/37 ;
705/412 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 50/06 20130101;
G06Q 20/201 20130101; Y04S 50/12 20130101; G06Q 30/08 20130101;
G06Q 30/00 20130101; G07F 15/00 20130101; Y04S 50/10 20130101; H02J
3/008 20130101; G06Q 30/0283 20130101; G06Q 40/00 20130101; G06Q
40/04 20130101; Y04S 50/14 20130101; G06Q 10/04 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
705/37 ;
705/412 |
International
Class: |
G06F 017/60; G01R
011/56; G06F 017/00; G01R 021/133 |
Claims
Claims
1. 131.A method for creating an automated bidding process among
energy Providers for the benefit of a set of end users served by a
first DISCO, in which a moderating computer collects bids from each
Provider of a plurality of energy Providers, processes the bids and
designates at least one Provider of the plurality of energy
Providers to provide electric power to the set of end users, based
on an economic choice in accordance with auction rules, wherein the
method comprises:a.in the moderating computer, receiving bids to
provide at least one standard unit or block of electric power to
the set of end users, processing the bids in accordance with the
auction rules to produce processed bid data, and storing the bids
and the processed bid data in a data base of the moderating
computer as first DISCO data;b.in the moderating computer,
transmitting at least a portion of the first DISCO data to at least
a portion of the plurality of energy Providers; andc.in the
moderating computer, designating at least one Provider of the
plurality of energy Providers to provide electric power to the set
of end users, with each designated Provider to supply at least a
portion of the electric power to be used by the set of end users at
at least one end-user facility during at least a portion of a
specific future time interval.2.A method of Claim 1 in which the
moderating computer designates at least two Providers of the
plurality of energy Providers to provide electric power to the set
of end users, with each designated Provider to supply at least a
portion of the electric power to be used by the set of end users at
at least one end-user facility during the specific future time
interval.3.A method of Claim 1 in which the designated Providers,
when their respective commitments are summed, are committed to
provide the electric power required to supply 100% of the energy
needs of the set of end usersreturnFillreturnFill.4.A method of
Claim 1 in which the auction rules include bid formulation
requirements specifying the required elements that must be
reflected in the bid for the moderating computer to consider the
bid valid.5.A method of Claim 4 in which the moderating computer
transmits at least a portion of the auction rules to at least a
portion of the plurality of energy Providers.6.A method of Claim 4
in which the bid formulation requirements specify that all bids
indicate the quantity of standard units or blocks of electric power
each Provider will provide, at a specific price, to the set of end
users.7.A method of Claim 1 comprising, in the moderating computer,
receiving decision rules from an administrator associated with the
moderating computer or from the set of end users, processing at
least a portion of the first DISCO data and the decision rules, and
designating at least a first designated Provider for the provision
of electric power to the set of end users.8.A method of Claim 1 in
which the moderating computer transmits at least a portion of the
first DISCO data to at least a portion of the plurality of energy
Providers subsequent to designating at least a first designated
Provider to provide electric power to the set of end users.9.A
method of Claim 1 in which at least a first designated Provider is
designated by the moderating computer as a default Provider or a
contract Provider.10.A method of Claim 1 in which at least one
adjunct computer performs at least a portion of the processing and
communications functions of the moderating computer.11.A method for
creating an automated bidding process among energy Providers for
the benefit of a set of end users served by a first DISCO, in which
a moderating computer collects bids from each Provider of a
plurality of energy Providers, processes the bids and designates at
least one Provider of the plurality of energy Providers to provide
electric power to the set of end users, based on an economic choice
in accordance with auction rules, wherein the method comprises:a.in
the moderating computer, receiving bids to provide at least one
standard unit or block of electric power to the set of end users,
processing the bids in accordance with the auction rules to produce
processed bid data, and storing the bids and the processed bid data
in a data base of the moderating computer as first DISCO data;b.in
the moderating computer, transmitting at least a portion of the
first DISCO data to at least a portion of the plurality of energy
Providers;c.in the moderating computer, designating at least one
Provider of the plurality of energy Providers to provide electric
power to the set of end users, with each designated Provider to
supply at least a portion of the electric power to be used by the
set of end users at at least one end-user facility during at least
a portion of a specific future time interval; andd.in the
moderating computer, or in the first DISCO, or in an independent
meter reading service entity, transmitting periodic usage reports
associated with the set of end users to at least a first designated
Provider.12.A method of Claim 11 in which the moderating computer
designates at least two Providers of the plurality of energy
Providers to provide electric power to the set of end users, with
each designated Provider to supply at least a portion of the
electric power to be used by the set of end users at at least one
end-user facility during the specific future time interval.13.A
method of Claim 11 in which the designated Providers, when their
respective commitments are summed, are committed to provide the
electric power required to supply 100% of the energy needs of the
set of end users.14.A method of Claim 11 in which the auction rules
include bid formulation requirements specifying the required
elements that must be reflected in the bid for the moderating
computer to consider the bid valid.15.A method of Claim 14 in which
the moderating computer transmits at least a portion of the auction
rules to at least a portion of the plurality of energy
Providers.16.A method of Claim 14 in which the bid formulation
requirements specify that all bids indicate the quantity of
standard units or blocks of electric power each Provider will
provide, at a specific price, to the set of end users.17.A method
of Claim 11 in which the moderating computer transmits historical
energy usage data associated with the set of end users to at least
a portion of the plurality of energy providers.18.A method of Claim
11 comprising, in the moderating computer, receiving decision rules
from an administrator associated with the moderating computer or
from the set of end users, processing at least a portion of the
first DISCO data and the decision rules, and designating at least a
first designated Provider for the provision of electric power to
the set of end users.19.A method of Claim 11in which the moderating
computer transmits at least a portion of the first DISCO data to at
least a portion of the plurality of energy Providers subsequent to
designating at least a first designated Provider to provide
electric power to the set of end users.20.A method of Claim 11 in
which at least one adjunct computer performs at least a portion of
the processing and communications functions of the moderating
computer.21.A method for creating an automated bidding process
among energy Providers for the benefit of a set of end users served
by a first DISCO, in which a moderating computer collects bids from
each Provider of a plurality of energy Providers, processes the
bids and communicates with a first control computer, thereby
enabling the first control computer to designate at least two
Providers of the plurality of energy Providers to provide electric
power to the set of end users, based on an economic choice in
accordance with auction rules, wherein the method comprises:a.in
the moderating computer, receiving bids to provide at least one
standard unit or block of electric power to the set of end users,
processing the bids in accordance with the auction rules to produce
processed bid data, and storing the bids and the processed bid data
in a data base of the moderating computer as first DISCO data;b.in
the moderating computer, transmitting at least a portion of the
first DISCO data to the first control computer;c.in the moderating
computer or the first control computer, transmitting at least a
portion of the first DISCO data to at least a portion of the
plurality of energy Providers; andd.in the first control computer,
designating at least two Providers of the plurality of energy
Providers to provide electric power to the set of end users, with
each designated Provider to supply at least a portion of the
electric power to be used by the set of end users at at least one
end-user facility during at least a portion of a specific future
time interval.
2. 22.A method of Claim 21 in which the designated Providers, when
their respective commitments are summed, are committed to provide
the electric power required to supply 100% of the energy needs of
the set of end users.23.A method of Claim 21 in which the auction
rules include bid formulation requirements specifying the required
elements that must be reflected in the bid for the moderating
computer to consider the bid valid.24.A method of Claim 23 in which
the bid formulation requirements specify that all bids indicate the
quantity of standard units or blocks of electric power each
Provider will provide, at a specific price, to the set of end
users.25.A method for creating an automated bidding process among
energy Providers for the benefit of a set of end users served by a
first DISCO, in which a moderating computer collects bids from each
Provider of a plurality of energy Providers, processes the bids and
communicates with a first control computer, thereby enabling the
first control computer to designate at least one Provider of the
plurality of energy Providers to provide electric power to the set
of end users, based on an economic choice in accordance with
auction rules, wherein the method comprises:a.in the moderating
computer, receiving bids to provide at least one standard unit or
block of electric power to the set of end users, processing the
bids in accordance with the auction rules to produce processed bid
data, and storing the bids and the processed bid data in a data
base of the moderating computer as first DISCO data;b.in the
moderating computer, transmitting at least a portion of the first
DISCO data to the first control computer;c.in the moderating
computer or the first control computer, transmitting at least a
portion of the first DISCO data to at least a portion of the
plurality of energy Providers;d.in the first control computer,
designating at least one Provider of the plurality of energy
Providers to provide electric power to the set of end users, with
each designated Provider to supply at least a portion of the
electric power to be used by the set of end users at at least one
end-user facility during at least a portion of a specific future
time interval; ande.in the moderating computer, or in the first
control computer, or in the first DISCO, or in an independent meter
reading service entity, transmitting periodic usage reports
associated with the set of end users to at least a first designated
Provider.
3. 26.A method of Claim 25 in which the moderating computer
designates at least two Providers of the plurality of energy
Providers to provide electric power to the set of end users, with
each designated Provider to supply at least a portion of the
electric power to be used by the set of end users at at least one
end-user facility during the specific future time interval.27.A
method of Claim 25 in which the designated Providers, when their
respective commitments are summed, are committed to provide the
electric power required to supply 100% of the energy needs of the
set of end users.28.A method of Claim 25 in which the auction rules
include bid formulation requirements specifying the required
elements that must be reflected in the bid for the moderating
computer to consider the bid valid.29.A method of Claim 28 in which
the moderating computer transmits at least a portion of the auction
rules to at least a portion of the plurality of energy
Providers.30.A method of Claim 28 in which the bid formulation
requirements specify that all bids indicate the quantity of
standard units or blocks of electric power each Provider will
provide, at a specific price, to the set of end users.31.A method
of Claim 25 comprising, in the first control computer, receiving
decision rules from an administrator associated with the first
control computer or from the set of end users, processing at least
a portion of the first DISCO data and the decision rules, and
designating at least a first designated Provider for the provision
of electric power to the set of end users.32.A method of Claim 25
in which the moderating computer or the first control computer
transmits at least a portion of the first DISCO data to at least a
portion of the plurality of energy Providers subsequent to the
first control computer designating at least a first designated
provider to provide electric power to the set of end users.33.A
method of Claim 25 in which at least a first designated Provider is
designated by the first control computer as a default Provider or a
contract Provider.34.A method of Claim 25 in which the first
control computer is operated by the moderating computer, or by the
set of end users, or by a reseller to the set of end users, or by
the first DISCO.35.A method of Claim 25 in which at least a portion
of the processing and communications functions of the moderating
computer or the first control computer are performed by one or more
adjunct computers.36.A method of Claim 25 in which the first
control computer is a computer adjunct to the moderating
computer.37.An energy bidding moderator for enabling designation of
at least one Provider of a plurality of energy Providers for the
provision of electric power to a set of end users served by a first
DISCO, based on an economic choice in accordance with auction
rules, comprising:a.a computer with a processor and a
memory;b.means for receiving, from each Provider of a plurality of
energy Providers, bids to provide at least one standard unit or
block of electric power to the set of end users;c.means for
processing the bids in accordance with the auction rules to produce
processed bid data, and storing the bids and the processed bid data
in the memory as first DISCO data;d.means for transmitting at least
a portion of the first DISCO data to at least a portion of the
plurality of energy Providers; ande.means for designating at least
one Provider of the plurality of energy Providers to provide
electric power to the set of end users, with each designated
Provider to supply at least a portion of the electric power to be
used by the set of end users at at least one end-user facility
during at least a portion of a specific future time interval.38.A
moderator of Claim 37 including means for designating at least two
Providers of the plurality of energy Providers to provide electric
power to the set of end users, with each designated Provider to
supply at least a portion of the electric power to be used by the
set of end users at at least one end-user facility during the
specific future time interval.39.A moderator of Claim 37 including
means for designating at least one Provider committed to provide
the electric power required to supply 100% of the energy needs of
the set of end users.40.A moderator of Claim 37 including means for
including bid formulation requirements in the auction rules, the
bid formulation requirements specifying the required elements that
must be reflected in the bid for the moderating computer to
consider the bid valid.41.A moderator of Claim 40 including means
for transmitting at least a portion of the auction rules to at
least a portion of the plurality of energy Providers.42.A moderator
of Claim 40 including means for including bid formulation
requirements specifying that all bids indicate the quantity of
standard units or blocks of electric power each Provider will
provide, at a specific price, to the set of end users.43.A
moderator of Claim 37 further including means for receiving
decision rules from an administrator associated with the moderator
or from the set of end users, processing at least a portion of the
first DISCO data and the decision rules, and designating at least a
first designated Provider for the provision of electric power to
the set of end users.44.A moderator of Claim 37 including means for
notifying each designated Provider of its designation to provide
electric power to the set of end users and notifying the first
DISCO of the Provider"s designation.
4. 45.A moderator of Claim 37 including means for one or more
adjunct computers to perform at least a portion of the processing
and communications functions of the moderator.46.A method for
conducting an automated bidding process among a plurality of energy
Providers for the benefit of end users, based on an economic choice
in accordance with auction rules, comprising:a.collecting, from
each Provider of a plurality of energy Providers, bids to provide
at least one standard unit or block of electric power to a set of
end users served by a first DISCO;b. processing the bids that apply
to the set of end users in accordance with the auction
rules;c.distributing at least a portion of processed bid
information to at least a portion of the plurality of energy
Providers;d.designating, on the basis of the processed bid
information, at least one Provider of the plurality of energy
Providers to provide electric power to the set of end users, with
each designated Provider to supply at least a portion of the
electric power to be used by the set of end users at at least one
end-user facility during at least a portion of a specific future
time interval; ande.making available periodic usage reports
associated with the set of end users to at least a first designated
Provider, thereby enabling the at least a first designated Provider
to adjust its electric power supply during at least a portion of
the specific future time interval in which the at least a first
designated Provider supplies at least a portion of the electric
power to be used by the set of end users at at least one end-user
facility.47.A method of Claim 46 in which at least two Providers of
the plurality of energy Providers are designated, on the basis of
the processed bid information, to provide electric power to the set
of end users, with each designated Provider to supply at least a
portion of the electric power to be used by the set of end users at
at least one end-user facility during the specific future time
interval.48.A method of Claim 46 in which the designated Providers,
when their respective commitments are summed, are committed to
provide the electric power required to supply 100% of the energy
needs of the set of end users.49.A method of Claim 46 in which the
auction rules include bid formulation requirements specifying the
required elements that must be reflected in the bid for the bid to
be considered valid.50.A method of Claim 49 in which at least a
portion of the auction rules are distributed to at least a portion
of the plurality of energy Providers.51.A method of Claim 49 in
which the bid formulation requirements specify that all bids
indicate the quantity of standard units or blocks of electric power
each Provider will provide, at a specific price, to the set of end
users.52.A method of Claim 46 in which historical energy usage data
associated with the set of end users is distributed to at least a
portion of the plurality of energy providers.53.A method of Claim
46 in which each of Steps a. e. is accomplished by means of
computer processing.54.A method of Claim 46 in which at least a
portion of the processed bid information is distributed to at least
a portion of the plurality of energy Providers subsequent to
designating at least a first designated Provider to provide
electric power to the set of end users.55.A method for creating an
automated bidding process among energy Providers for the benefit of
end users in which a moderating computer collects bids from each
Provider of a plurality of energy Providers, processes the bids and
designates at least one Provider of the plurality of energy
Providers to provide energy to at least one end user, based on an
economic choice in accordance with auction rules, wherein the
method comprises:a.in the moderating computer, receiving bids to
provide energy to the at least one end user, processing the bids in
accordance with the auction rules to produce processed bid data,
and storing the bids and the processed bid data in a data base of
the moderating computer as first end-user set data;b.in the
moderating computer, transmitting at least a portion of the first
end-user set data to at least a portion of the plurality of energy
Providers; andc.in the moderating computer, designating at least
one Provider of the plurality of energy Providers to provide energy
to the at least one end user, with each designated Provider to
supply at least a portion of the energy to be used by the at least
one end user at at least one end-user facility during at least a
portion of a specific future time interval.1556.A method of Claim
55 in which the moderating computer designates at least two
Providers of the plurality of energy Providers to provide energy to
the at least one end user, with each designated Provider to supply
at least a portion of the energy to be used by the at least one end
user at at least one end-user facility during the specific future
time interval.57.A method of Claim 55 in which the designated
Providers, when their respective commitments are summed, are
committed to supply 100% of the energy needed by the at least one
end user.58.A method of Claim 55 in which the auction rules include
bid formulation requirements specifying the required elements that
must be reflected in the bid for the moderating computer to
consider the bid valid.59.A method of Claim 58 in which the
moderating computer transmits at least a portion of the auction
rules to at least a portion of the plurality of energy
Providers.60.A method of Claim 58 in which the bid formulation
requirements specify that all bids indicate the quantity of energy
each Provider will provide, at a specific price, to the at least
one end user.61.A method of Claim 55 in which the moderating
computer transmits historical energy usage data associated with the
at least one end user to at least a portion of the plurality of
energy providers.62.A method of Claim 55 in which at least one
adjunct computer performs at least a portion of the processing and
communications functions of the moderating computer.63.A method of
Claim 55 including, in the moderating computer, transmitting at
least a portion of the first end-user set data to the at least one
end user.64.A method of Claim 55 comprising, in the moderating
computer, receiving decision rules from an administrator associated
with the moderating computer or from the at least one end user,
processing at least a portion of the first end-user set data and
the decision rules, and designating at least a first designated
Provider for the provision of energy to the at least one end
user.65.A method of Claim 55 including, in the moderating computer,
transmitting a designation notification to each designated Provider
and transmitting to a first DISCO serving the at least one end user
at least a portion of the information contained in the designation
notification.66.A method of Claim 55 in which the moderating
computer transmits at least a portion of the first end-user set
data to at least a portion of the plurality of energy Providers
subsequent to designating at least a first designated Provider to
provide energy to the at least one end user.67.A method of Claim 55
in which at least a first designated Provider is designated by the
moderating computer to supply a specific quantity or block of
energy.68.A method of Claim 55 in which at least a first designated
Provider is designated by the moderating computer as a default
Provider or a contract Provider.1869.A method for creating an
automated bidding process among energy Providers for the benefit of
end users in which a moderating computer collects bids from each
Provider of a plurality of energy Providers, processes the bids and
designates at least one Provider of the plurality of energy
Providers to provide energy to at least one end user, based on an
economic choice in accordance with auction rules, wherein the
method comprises:a.in the moderating computer, receiving bids to
provide energy to the at least one end user, processing the bids in
accordance with the auction rules to produce processed bid data,
and storing the bids and the processed bid data in a data base of
the moderating computer as first end-user set data;b.in the
moderating computer, transmitting at least a portion of the first
end-user set data to at least a portion of the plurality of energy
Providers;c.in the moderating computer, designating at least one
Provider of the plurality of energy Providers to provide energy to
the at least one end user, with each designated Provider to supply
at least a portion of the energy to be used by the at least one end
user at at least one end-user facility during at least a portion of
a specific future time interval; andd.in the moderating computer,
or in a first DISCO serving the at least one end user, or in an
independent meter reading service entity, transmitting periodic
usage reports associated with the at least one end user to at least
a first designated Provider.70.A method of Claim 69 in which the
moderating computer designates at least two Providers of the
plurality of energy Providers to provide energy to the at least one
end user, with each designated Provider to supply at least a
portion of the energy to be used by the at least one end user at at
least one end-user facility during the specific future time
interval.71.A method of Claim 69 in which the designated Providers,
when their respective commitments are summed, are committed to
supply 100% of the energy needed by the at least one end user.72.A
method of Claim 69 in which the auction rules include bid
formulation requirements specifying the required elements that must
be reflected in the bid for the moderating computer to consider the
bid valid .73.A method of Claim 72 in which the moderating computer
transmits at least a portion of the auction rules to at least a
portion of the plurality of energy Providers.74.A method of Claim
72 in which the bid formulation requirements specify that all bids
indicate the quantity of energy each Provider will provide, at a
specific price, to the at least one end user.75.A method of Claim
69 in which the moderating computer transmits historical energy
usage data associated with the at least one end user to at least a
portion of the plurality of energy providers.76.A method of Claim
69 in which the moderating computer transmits at least a portion of
the first end-user set data to at least a portion of the plurality
of energy Providers subsequent to designating at least a first
designated Provider to provide energy to the at least one end
user.77.A method of Claim 69 in which at least one adjunct computer
performs at least a portion of the processing and communications
functions of the moderating computer.78.A method for creating an
automated bidding process among energy Providers for the benefit of
end users in which a moderating computer collects bids from each
Provider of a plurality of energy Providers, processes the bids and
communicates with a first control computer, thereby enabling the
first control computer to designate at least two Providers of the
plurality of energy Providers to provide energy to the at least one
end user, based on an economic choice in accordance with auction
rules, wherein the method comprises:a.in the moderating computer,
receiving bids to provide energy to the at least one end user,
processing the bids in accordance with the auction rules to produce
processed bid data, and storing the bids and the processed bid data
in a data base of the moderating computer as first control computer
data;b.in the moderating computer, transmitting at least a portion
of the first control computer data to the first control
computer;c.in the moderating computer or the first control
computer, transmitting at least a portion of the first control
computer data to at least a portion of the plurality of energy
Providers; andd.in the first control computer, designating at least
two Providers of the plurality of energy Providers to provide
energy to the at least one end user, with each designated Provider
to supply at least a portion of the energy to be used by the at
least one end user at at least one end-user facility during at
least a portion of a specific future time interval.1979.A method of
Claim 78 in which the designated Providers, when their respective
commitments are summed, are committed to supply 100% of the energy
needed by the at least one end user.80.A method of Claim 78 in
which the auction rules include bid formulation requirements
specifying the required elements that must be reflected in the bid
for the moderating computer to consider the bid valid.81.A method
of Claim 80 in which the bid formulation requirements specify that
all bids indicate the quantity of energy each Provider will
provide, at a specific price, to the at least one end user.82.A
method for creating an automated bidding process among energy
Providers for the benefit of end users in which a moderating
computer collects bids from each Provider of a plurality of energy
Providers, processes the bids and communicates with a first control
computer, thereby enabling the first control computer to designate
at least one Provider of the plurality of energy Providers to
provide energy to the at least one end user, based on an economic
choice in accordance with auction rules, wherein the method
comprises:a.in the moderating computer, receiving bids to provide
energy to the at least one end user, processing the bids in
accordance with the auction rules to produce processed bid data,
and storing the bids and the processed bid data in a data base of
the moderating computer as first control computer data;b.in the
moderating computer, transmitting at least a portion of the first
control computer data to the first control computer;c.in the
moderating computer or the first control computer, transmitting at
least a portion of the first control computer data to at least a
portion of the plurality of energy Providers;d.in the first control
computer, designating at least one Provider of the plurality of
energy Providers to provide energy to the at least one end user,
with each designated Provider to supply at least a portion of the
energy to be used by the at least one end user at at least one
end-user facility during at least a portion of a specific future
time interval; ande.in the moderating computer, or in the first
control computer, or in a first DISCO serving the at least one end
user, or in an independent meter reading service entity,
transmitting periodic usage reports associated with the at least
one end user to at least a first designated Provider.
5. 2083.A method of Claim 82 in which the first control computer
designates at least two Providers of the plurality of energy
Providers to provide energy to the at least one end user, with each
designated Provider to supply at least a portion of the energy to
be used by the at least one end user at at least one end-user
facility during the specific future time interval.84.A method of
Claim 82 in which the designated Providers, when their respective
commitments are summed, are committed to supply 100% of the energy
needed by the at least one end user.2185.A method of Claim 82 in
which the auction rules include bid formulation requirements
specifying the required elements that must be reflected in the bid
for the moderating computer to consider the bid valid.86.A method
of Claim 85 in which the moderating computer transmits at least a
portion of the auction rules to at least a portion of the plurality
of energy Providers.87.A method of Claim 85 in which the bid
formulation requirements specify that all bids indicate the
quantity of energy each Provider will provide, at a specific price,
to the at least one end user.2188.A method of Claim 82 in which the
moderating computer or the first control computer transmits
historical energy usage data associated with the at least one end
user to at least a portion of the plurality of energy
providers.89.A method of Claim 82 comprising, in the first control
computer, receiving decision rules from an administrator associated
with the first control computer or from the at least one end user,
processing at least a portion of the first control computer data
and the decision rules, and designating at least a first designated
Provider for the provision of energy to the at least one end
user.90.A method of Claim 82 including, in the moderating computer
or the first control computer, notifying each designated Provider
of its designation to provide energy to the at least one end user
and notifying the first DISCO of the Provider"s designation.91.A
method of Claim 82 in which the moderating computer or the first
control computer transmits at least a portion of the first control
computer data to at least a portion of the plurality of energy
Providers subsequent to the first control computer designating at
least a first designated provider to provide energy to the at least
one end user.2192.A method of Claim 82 in which at least a first
designated Provider is designated by the first control computer as
a default Provider or a contract Provider.93.A method of Claim 82
in which the first control computer is operated by the moderating
computer, or by the at least one end user, or by a reseller to the
at least one end user, or by the first DISCO.94.A method of Claim
82 in which the first control computer is a computer adjunct to the
moderating computer.2195.A method of Claim 82 in which at least a
portion of the processing and communications functions of the
moderating computer or the first control computer are performed by
one or more adjunct computers.2296.An energy bidding moderator for
enabling designation of at least one Provider of a plurality of
energy Providers for the provision of energy to at least one end
user, based on an economic choice in accordance with auction rules,
comprising:a.a computer with a processor and a memory;b.means for
receiving, from each Provider of a plurality of energy Providers,
bids to provide energy to at least one end user;c.means for
processing the bids in accordance with the auction rules to produce
processed bid data, and storing the bids and the processed bid data
in the memory as first end-user set data;d.means for transmitting
at least a portion of the first end-user set data to at least a
portion of the plurality of energy Providers; ande.means for
designating at least one Provider of the plurality of energy
Providers to provide energy to the at least one end user, with each
designated Provider to supply at least a portion of the energy to
be used by the at least one end user at at least one end-user
facility during at least a portion of a specific future time
interval.
6. 97.A moderator of Claim 96 further including means for receiving
decision rules from an administrator associated with the moderator
or from the at least one end user, and applying the decision rules
to the first end-user set data to designate at least a first
designated Provider for the provision of energy to the at least one
end user.98.A moderator of Claim 96 including means of notifying
each designated Provider of its designation to provide energy to
the at least one end user and notifying a first DISCO serving the
at least one end user of the Provider"s designation.
7. 2399.A moderator of Claim 96 including means for designating at
least one Provider committed to supply 100% of the energy needed by
the at least one end user.100.A moderator of Claim 96 including
means for including bid formulation requirements in the auction
rules, the bid formulation requirements specifying the required
elements that must be reflected in the bid for the moderator to
consider the bid valid.101.A moderator of Claim 100 including means
for transmitting at least a portion of the auction rules to at
least a portion of the plurality of energy Providers.102.A
moderator of Claim 100 including means for including bid
formulation requirements specifying that all bids indicate the
quantity of energy each Provider will provide, at a specific price,
to the at least one end user.103.A moderator of Claim 96 including
means for at least one adjunct computer to perform at least a
portion of the processing and communications functions of the
moderating computer.2423104.A method for conducting an automated
bidding process among a plurality of energy Providers for the
benefit of end users, based on an economic choice in accordance
with auction rules, comprising:a.collecting, from each Provider of
a plurality of energy Providers, bids to provide energy to at least
one end user;b.processing the bids that apply to the at least one
end user in accordance with the auction rules;c.distributing at
least a portion of processed bid information to at least a portion
of the plurality of energy Providers;d.designating, on the basis of
the processed bid information, at least one Provider of the
plurality of energy Providers to provide energy to the at least one
end user, with each designated Provider to supply at least a
portion of the energy to be used by the at least one end user at at
least one end-user facility during at least a portion of a specific
future time interval; ande.making available periodic usage reports
associated with the at least one end user to at least a first
designated Provider, thereby enabling the at least a first
designated Provider to adjust its energy supply during at least a
portion of the specific future time interval in which the at least
a first designated Provider supplies at least a portion of the
energy to be used by the at least one end user at at least one
end-user facility.105.A method of Claim 104 in which at least two
Providers of the plurality of energy Providers are designated, on
the basis of the processed bid information, to provide energy to
the at least one end user, with each designated Provider to supply
at least a portion of the energy to be used by the at least one end
user at at least one end-user facility during the specific future
time interval.106.A method of Claim 104 in which the designated
Providers, when their respective commitments are summed, are
committed to supply 100% of the energy needed by the at least one
end user.107.A method of Claim 104 in which the auction rules
include bid formulation requirements specifying the required
elements that must be reflected in the bid for the bid to be
considered valid.108.A method of Claim 107 in which at least a
portion of the auction rules are distributed to at least a portion
of the plurality of energy Providers.109.A method of Claim 107 in
which the bid formulation requirements specify that all bids
indicate the quantity of energy each Provider will provide, at a
specific price, to the at least one end user.110.A method of Claim
104 in which historical energy usage data associated with the at
least one end user is distributed to at least a portion of the
plurality of energy providers.111.A method of Claim 104 in which
each of Steps a. - e. is accomplished by means of computer
processing.112.A method of Claim 104 in which at least a portion of
the processed bid information is distributed to at least a portion
of the plurality of energy Providers subsequent to the designating
of at least a first designated Provider to provide energy to the at
least one end user.
Description
Cross Reference to Related Applications
[0001] This Application claims the benefit of the priority of
Provisional Applications Serial # 60/039,041 filed February 24,
1997 and Serial # 60/064,421, filed October 30, 1997
andreturnFillreturnFill Application Serial # 09/023,968, filed
February 13, 1998, now U.S. Pat. #6,047,274, issued April 4, 2000,
and is a Continuation of co-pending Application Ser. #09/542,451,
filed April 4, 2000.
Background of Invention
[0002] The electric power and natural gas industries will
experience fundamental changes over the next few years as the
results of continuing deregulation take hold. One of those results
is to give end users a choice of energy providers. Until now,
substantially all end users purchased the electric power or natural
gas they needed from the local electric or gas utility serving
their geographic area. Electric utilities have generally operated
as vertically integrated local monopolies, producing or purchasing
(on a wholesale basis), the quantities of electric power they
needed to serve all end users within the utility's geographic
boundaries. Natural gas utilities have generally operated in a
similar fashion, though usually purchasing rather than producing
most of the natural gas they need.According to the Federal Energy
Information Administration, legislation to deregulate the electric
power industry has been adopted in five states and is pending in
over 20 others. In general, this legislation calls for a
restructuring of the industry into at least three kinds of
participants: (i) electric power generating companies, (ii)
long-haul transmission companies, and (iii) local distribution
companies (DISCOs). Power generators will include companies that
own actual generating facilities as well as those firms that
purchase generating capacity from others and market that available
power directly to end users. Under most of the various legislative
approaches, an end user will be given the opportunity to purchase
its electric power from any legitimate power generating company
willing to supply electric power to that end user's geographic
region. One of the primary aims of electric power deregulation
efforts nationwide is to reduce end user's energy prices by
introducing competition among power generators. As competition
increases, power generators are expected to offer prospective
customers various pricing plans premised, for example, on volume
and term commitments, and peak/off-peak usage. Under most of the
pending deregulation schemes, the local distribution company
facilities of the local electric utility will continue to be a
government-regulated monopoly within the region it serves. These
facilities are primarily the wires and other equipment constituting
the local power grid over which electric power is transmitted to
end user locations, having been delivered to the grid by generating
plants within the local utility"s service area or by other
utilities" grids interfacing with that local utility"s grid (when
the local utility purchases electric power today from suppliers
outside of its service area).In the natural gas industry, similar
deregulatory efforts are underway to enable greater competition and
customer choice. The wholesale purchase and sale of natural gas has
already been mostly deregulated. In some states large industrial
and commercial customers can purchase their natural gas directly
from gas producers rather than from the local gas utility. Most
industry observers expect local natural gas utilities to be
restructured in the near future to follow the model being used in
the electric power industry as a result of deregulation, with three
similar components: (i) natural gas production companies, (ii) gas
pipeline transmission companies, and (iii) local distribution
companies (DISCOs). Gas producers will include companies that own
actual production facilities as well as these firms that purchase
production capacity from others and market that available gas
directly to end users. End users are expected to be given the
opportunity to purchase the natural gas they need from any of
numerous natural gas producers willing to supply natural gas to
that end user"s locale. Under most of the expected deregulation
models, the local distribution company facilities of the local gas
utility will continue to be a government-regulated monopoly within
the region it serves. These facilities are primarily the pipelines
and other equipment constituting the regional gas pipeline network
through which natural gas is transported to end user locations,
having been delivered to the regional network by production
facilities within the local utility"s service area or, more often,
by long-haul gas pipeline transmission companies transporting
natural gas from production facilities to the local utility"s
regional pipeline network.Meter reading and billing of end users
has until now generally been handled by the local distribution
utility as part of its local franchise. As a result of
deregulation, however, the local distribution utility is expected
in many jurisdictions to lose this monopoly over meter reading and
billing. The various state public utility commissions (PUCs) in
those states where electric power deregulation plans are at an
advanced stage, for example, are considering giving power
generators the right to read meters and render their own bills
without the cooperation of the local distribution utility. In many
cases, the power generator or end user may have the right to
determine who will own the meter and whether the end user will
receive separate bills (one for energy consumption from the power
generator and another for the distribution and service charges of
the local distribution utility) or a consolidated bill, as is the
case today. Many industry experts expect independent service
entities (not necessarily affiliated with, but acting as agents
for, power generators or gas producers, local distribution
utilities, end users, or any combination thereof) to provide meter
reading and billing services on a more efficient basis than local
electric and gas utilities do today.Both electric and gas utilities
rely primarily on meters at customer sites to apprise them of how
much energy the customer has taken from the utility"s supply lines
running down the street. Many of these meters can measure (i) the
volume of energy used (e.g., kilowatt-hours of electricity), (ii)
the highest volume used during any hour throughout a monthly
billing cycle (peak demand), and (iii) the volume used in every
hour of the monthly billing cycle (or as short a period as every 15
minutes during this cycle). Some meters, such as those used by
larger industrial and commercial end users, can measure all of the
above. Other meters measure only total monthly volume and peak
demand. Meters servicing residential customers often measure only
total volume used during the month.Today, most end users have
meters that require a physical on-site visit by the local utility
to read the meter in order to determine the end user"s actual
energy usage since the last time the meter was read. Typically,
such on-site visits are made once a month. If the local utility
fails to make such a visit, the end user"s energy usage for that
month is estimated and billed based on prior usage. Billing is then
reconciled after the next on-site meter reading. More sophisticated
meters now available enable the local utility to monitor the end
user"s actual energy usage electronically, without requiring a
physical on-site visit to read the meter. Employing these meters,
the local utility can continuously monitor the end user"s actual
energy usage by taking readings every 15 minutes throughout the
day, if necessary. Some local electric utilities, for example,
require their largest customers to install these electronic
remotely-readable meters so that the utility can monitor these
customers" actual usage throughout the day and, as a result, better
manage and balance the overall load on its local power distribution
grid. Industry experts expect meter manufacturers within a few
years to reduce this monitoring window to under five
minutes.Whether the meter is read by an on-site visit or via remote
communication, today the local utility records that energy usage
data and applies its applicable tariffed rate to produce a bill for
the end user. These tariffs, filed by the local utility with the
applicable state PUC, set forth specific rates to be charged to
different classes of customers - e.g., large industrial and
commercial end users often pay rates based on peak demand as well
as total volume consumed, whereas the rates paid by residential
customers typically relate only to total volume consumed. Some
tariffs call for different rates depending on time of use (e.g.,
peak v. off-peak pricing). In general, large customers pay lower
rates than small customers. As deregulation progresses, competing
energy providers are expected to offer end users myriad pricing
plans and contractual arrangements geared to time of use, volume
and term commitments, etc. Power generators will compete with other
power generators just as gas producers will compete with other gas
producers.An active wholesale market exists for electric power.
Power generators, local electric utilities, resellers, independent
traders and brokers actively buy and sell electric power among
themselves. A power generator may wish to sell excess generating
capacity not required for its own operations or not contractually
committed to any utility, or may need to purchase additional power
to satisfy its generating commitments. A local electric utility may
be selling excess generating capacity (from its own generating
plants) or buying power from nearby utilities, resellers, traders
or brokers to cover a shortfall in its own supply (e.g., during
certain peak periods). Resellers and traders may be fulfilling
take-or-pay or supply contracts they have with power generators,
local utilities or each other or just buying or selling based on
speculation about the future price of power in the spot market.
Under deregulation, the local electric utility will no longer have
a monopoly on selling power to end users. Power generators, other
utilities, resellers, brokers and other power marketers will all be
able to sell electric power directly to end users.In the wholesale
power market, buyers typically take title to the electric power
they purchase at well-established interfaces or transfer points on
a regional power grid (e.g., the Oregon-California border). In many
cases, however, the purchase arrangement may call for title to be
passed at some alternate point, such as (i) the point on the
regional grid nearest the seller"s generating facility or (ii) if
the buyer is a local distribution utility, the point(s) on its
local grid where the grid interfaces with the power grids of
neighboring utilities. Before this power can be delivered to the
buyer at the agreed transfer point, the seller must schedule a
contract path for this power to travel from the seller"s generating
facility (or the point at which the seller is to take title if the
seller purchased this power from another source) to the transfer
point. The buyer must, in turn, schedule a transmission path from
the transfer point to the buyer"s own grid interface (if the buyer,
for example, is a local distribution utility) or, if the buyer is
reselling this power to another party, to a transfer point agreed
to by such other party. Scheduling contract or transmission paths
is usually coordinated through the regional grid controller(s) for
the power grids over which this power is to be transmitted. The
regional grid controller manages one or more local power grids,
keeping demand on the combined grid in balance with available
supply at all times. Generally, but not always, the affected power
grids are those owned and controlled by the electric utilities
whose service areas are situated between the source of this power
and the transfer point. The charges for transmission of the
purchased power to and from the point at which title is passed are
normally borne by the seller and buyer, respectively.In many states
or geographic regions, local electric utilities have formed
wholesale power pools in which they share power, as needed, with
other members of the pool under arrangements and according to rules
previously agreed to by all the members. In some of these power
pools, the members" generating facilities and key portions of their
respective power grids are placed under the control of a regional
or pool controller who manages the continuous balancing of power
being transmitted across these grids for greatest efficiency and at
lowest cost to the members. The pool controller in some cases, for
example, will advise the pool members on one day of the power he
expects to need during each hour of the following day, in order to
satisfy the projected aggregate demand on the pool"s combined grid
by the utilities" customers. Each member is invited to submit
offers (quantities and prices) of the power it is willing to supply
to the combined grid. Starting with the lowest-priced power first,
the controller accepts such offers until he reaches the aggregate
quantity he needs for each hour of the next day. Typically, the
clearing price - the price of the last unit of power needed by the
controller to meet his projected demand for each hour - is used to
set the price that all suppliers for that hour will receive,
notwithstanding that some of the accepted offers were at prices
lower than the clearing price. This approach ensures an efficient
but equitable least-cost wholesale pricing arrangement among the
pool members.As deregulation efforts have gained momentum in the
electric power industry, similar pooling arrangements have been
explored to make the wholesale market more efficient but also to
give energy marketers not affiliated with a local utility a
reasonable chance to compete. The California Public Utilities
Commission, for example, has proposed a power exchange to which the
three largest in-state electric utilities must sell all their
generated power and from which they must also buy all the power
they need for distribution to their end user customers. Other power
generators, utilities, resellers, traders and brokers can also buy
and sell power through this exchange. Each day the operator of the
power exchange will assess the next day"s power supply requirements
for the three largest utilities" customers as well as all those of
the other local utilities in California to be supplied power via
the exchange. The operator will ask power generators, local
utilities with generating capacity, resellers and traders (and any
others willing to supply electric power to the exchange) to submit
asking prices for specified quantities of power to be delivered to
the California power grid during each hour of the next day.
Starting with the lowest-priced power first, the exchange operator
will then match its assessed needs for power during each hour of
the next day against the offered power until the operator has
identified sufficient power supplies for each hour to meet its
anticipated demand. The price at which this offered power is
accepted by the exchange operator will be the purchase price
payable to the power provider. The power exchange plans to publish
these prices every day. Similar exchange or pooling arrangements
are being studied by other state public utility commissions as part
of their deregulation proceedings.One of the primary objectives of
deregulation is to reduce energy costs for end users by fostering
competition among energy providers. Most electric power industry
analysts, for example, assume that end users will only realize
significant savings if they move to time-of-use pricing (e.g., peak
v. off-peak). In many states, larger end users are already subject
to different prices based on the cost to the local electric utility
of supplying power during periods of peak demand across its service
area. In general, the cost to providers of generating power during
peak demand hours can be dramatically higher than at other times of
the day. The greater efficiency of the wholesale market and
increased visibility of wholesale prices is expected to influence
the pricing plans that providers will be willing to offer end
users, especially those end users who are willing to pay different
prices based on (i) when during the day they typically need more or
less power and/or (ii) whether they can alter their current power
consumption patterns to conserve usage during the hours of highest
demand within the local utility"s service area.An active wholesale
market also exists for natural gas. Gas producers, local gas
utilities, resellers, independent traders and brokers actively buy
and sell natural gas among themselves. A gas producer may wish to
sell excess production capacity not required for its own operations
or not contractually committed to any utility or other party, or
may need to purchase additional gas supplies to satisfy its
production commitments. A local utility may be buying natural gas
from producers, other utilities, resellers, traders or brokers to
secure its necessary supplies or may be selling gas to many of
these same parties if it has excess supplies. Resellers and traders
may be fulfilling take-or-pay or supply contracts they have with
gas producers, local utilities or each other or just buying or
selling based on speculation about the future price of natural gas
in the spot market. Gas producers, other utilities, resellers,
brokers and other natural gas marketers will all be able to sell
natural gas directly to end users under most deregulation models
for the natural gas market.In the wholesale natural gas market,
buyers may take title to the gas they purchase at any of several
possible transfer points from the gas production facilities to the
interface between the long-haul transmission pipeline transporting
the gas and the local utility"s regional pipeline network.
Scheduling transmission of newly purchased or sold gas is usually
coordinated with
the operator of the long-haul transmission pipeline expected to
transport this gas to the buyer. The charges for transmission of
the purchased gas to and from the point at which title is passed
are normally borne by the seller and buyer, respectively.
Summary of Invention
[0003] The provision of electric power and natural gas to end users
is dominated by fixed price arrangements set according to (i)
orders promulgated by the federal or state governmental bodies
regulating providers, (ii) tariffs filed with such governmental
authorities by the providers, or (iii) contractual arrangements
between providers and end users. However, because of technological
and regulatory changes, the provision of these sources of energy is
becoming more of a commodity, with competition between providers
expected to increase dramatically in the next few years. The
invention disclosed herein provides an auction service that will
stimulate this competition and facilitate the consumer"s ability
(and that of resellers) to make economic choices between providers.
In this method and system, providers supply energy (i.e., electric
power or natural gas) to end users (or resellers) in accordance
with economic incentives (e.g., lowest price) resulting from a
bidding process between participating providers, administered by a
bidding service entity through operation of a central processor, a
computer referred to as a bidding moderator (the Moderator). The
bidding process to supply electric power will be conducted separate
and apart from the bidding process to supply natural gas. Power
generators will compete only with other power generators. Gas
producers will compete only with other gas producers. However, for
ease of reference, power generators and gas producers are each
referred to herein as energy providers or just Providers. Through
this auction, Providers will be apprised of the bids of competing
Providers and have an opportunity to modify their bids
accordingly.Each of the Providers transmits to the Moderator the
rate it is willing to charge (or other economic incentive it is
willing to offer) for electric power or natural gas to be provided
to an end user or group of end users (or a reseller or group of
resellers), over some particular period of time. For purposes of
this application, resellers can be Providers or buyers of energy
supply. This bid may be lower than that Provider"s established rate
for any of several reasons (e.g., the Provider has excess
generating or production capacity at that time). The Provider may,
for example, also decide for capacity or competitive reasons to
place different bids on energy to be provided, for example, to
different end users at different times of day and at different
destinations (e.g., with higher prices for electric power supplied
during daily peak demand periods or for power delivered to
destinations at greater distances from the Provider"s power
generation facilities). The Provider may change its bids as often
as it likes as marketplace demands for energy change or in response
to competitors" bidding activities.The Moderator collects this bid
information from all the Providers, sorts it according to the rules
of the auction (e.g., sorting it among delivery destinations - such
as the grid interfaces of local electric distribution companies
serving end users), and may further process this bid information,
for example, to select Providers for particular end users or
resellers. This provider selection information may include, for
example, a prioritization of the Provider selection in accordance
with Providers" bids or the designation of a selected Provider or a
default Provider. The Moderator then transmits selected portions of
this information to a control computer associated with each end
user or group of end users (or each reseller or group of
resellers), as well as to participating Providers" energy network
management centers. Each control computer gets the rate information
and/or provider selection information from the Moderator that
pertains to the end user or group of end users (or the reseller or
group of resellers) with whom the control computer is associated.
The Moderator gives each Provider bid information from other
Providers for at least a portion of the end users (or resellers) in
regard to which any Provider has submitted a bid.A control computer
may be operated by the Moderator, by an end user or reseller
associated with a control computer (e.g., by the energy manager of
a large industrial customer), or by the local energy distribution
company that distributes energy to the end user associated with a
control computer. For some end users, the Moderator will perform
the functions of the control computer, perhaps using an adjunct
computer to the Moderator.From the list of all Providers providing
bid information to the Moderator, each control computer (or the
Moderator) can select those Providers from whom participating end
users or resellers will be provided electric power or natural gas
and can change that selection at any time. After each new bid is
submitted by a Provider and is processed by the Moderator, the rate
and/or provider selection data will be transmitted to the relevant
control computers (or retained by the Moderator if the Moderator
will perform the functions of the control computer, including
selecting a Provider for each set of end users or resellers) and
rate information will be distributed to some or all of the
Providers in order to implement the auction. A Provider, for
example, may not be interested in receiving the bids of other
Providers who are not active in the same geographic regions. All
Providers will have the opportunity thereafter to submit a lower or
higher bid for any end user (or any reseller or group of resellers)
or group of end users to whom they wish to supply electric power or
natural gas.The Moderator (or the control computer associated with
a set of end users or resellers) collects end users" actual usage
data from end users" meters and processes this data to create
periodic usage reports to be transmitted to Providers. If meter
readings are performed by the end user"s DISCO or a third-party
meter reading service entity rather than the Moderator, reports of
such end user"s actual energy usage can be collected by the DISCO
or third-party service entity and transmitted to the Moderator for
processing and subsequent transmission by the Moderator to the
respective Provider. The Provider, as part of managing its
available capacity, can adjust its bids, for example, to create
more demand for its available capacity on a spot basis, resulting
in incremental revenue for the Provider that would not be
achievable otherwise. These periodic usage reports can also be
transmitted by the Moderator or associated control computer to the
applicable end users or resellers.Each Provider of electric power
manages its power generation and/or power provisioning activities
(e.g., buying and selling power in the wholesale markets) in
response to periodic reports of end users" actual usage transmitted
by the Moderator (or applicable control computer) to the selected
Provider. In response to such reports, this Provider can adjust its
power generating or provisioning capacity to reflect higher or
lower expected usage as these periodic reports are received
throughout the day, month or year. Each selected Provider of
natural gas manages its gas production and/or gas provisioning
activities (e.g., buying and selling natural gas in the wholesale
markets) in response to similar periodic reports of end users"
actual usage transmitted by the Moderator (or applicable control
computer) to such Provider.The technology required to facilitate
forward delivery transactions, in which a buyer and seller agree to
the terms of a transaction today, for example, but schedule actual
delivery for a future time, would be helpful to end users,
resellers and Providers. The Moderator can facilitate such
transactions by processing requests for end users or resellers (as
buyers) for future energy supply or services to be delivered by
Providers in the future. In order to provide the Moderator with
sufficient information to process such a request, the buyer will
enter the information describing the request on a software-derived
template and transmit such information to the Moderator.Through
this bidding process, Providers can compete to supply electric
power or natural gas to end users and resellers based on available
capacity, delivery destinations, volume discounts, peak period
requirements, etc. Providers can also manage their power
generation, gas production and/or energy provisioning activities by
adjusting their bids from time to time, depending on capacity
utilization or other energy availability factors. And end users
(and resellers) can easily make economic choices among competing
Providers.
Brief Description of Drawings
[0004] Figure 1 is a schematic view of an exemplary system of the
invention showing shared data links between the Providers and the
Moderator, between the Moderator and the control computers, between
the control computer and the end users (or resellers), between the
Moderator and the DISCOs, between the Moderator"s adjunct computer
and the control computers, between the Moderator"s adjunct computer
and the DISCOs, and between the Moderator"s adjunct computer and
the Providers, and further showing dedicated communication lines
between the Moderator and its adjunct computer, and the use of the
public switched telephone network for communications between the
Moderator"s adjunct computer and end user meters.
[0005] Figure 2 is a schematic view of an exemplary system of the
invention showing dedicated communication lines between the
Provider and the Moderator and between the Moderator and the
control computers, and a shared data link between the Moderator and
the DISCOs.
[0006] Figure 3 is a schematic view of an exemplary system of the
invention showing shared data links between the Provider and the
Moderator, between the Moderator and the control computers, and
between the Moderator and the DISCOs.
[0007] Figure 4 is a schematic representation of an exemplary
method of the invention showing transmission of bids by Providers
to the Moderator, processing of bids by the Moderator and
transmission of Provider selection data to the control computers,
selection of Providers by the respective control computers and
transmission of selection notifications to the Moderator, and
transmission of such notifications by the Moderator to the selected
Providers and the applicable DISCOs.
[0008] Figure 5 is a schematic view of an exemplary system of the
invention in which the control computers transmit selection
notifications directly to the selected Providers.
[0009] Figure 6 is a schematic representation of an exemplary
method of the invention in which the control computers select
Providers and transmit notifications to the Moderator, the selected
Providers and the applicable DISCO.
[0010] Figure 7 is a schematic view of an exemplary system of the
invention in which the Moderator selects Providers and incorporates
all functions otherwise performed by the respective control
computers as shown in Figure 4.
[0011] Figure 8 is a schematic view of an exemplary system of the
invention in which the Moderator selects Providers for each set of
end users and communicates with all of the Providers and the DISCOs
via dedicated communication lines.
[0012] Figure 9 is a schematic view of an exemplary system of the
invention in which the Moderator selects Providers for each set of
end users and communicates with all of the Providers and the DISCOs
via shared data links.
[0013] Figure 10 is a schematic representation of an exemplary
method of the invention in which the Moderator selects Providers
for each set of end users and notifies the respective Providers and
applicable DISCOs.
[0014] Figure 11 is a schematic view of an exemplary system of the
invention showing the use of the Internet for communications
between the Moderator"s adjunct computer and end user meters.
[0015] Figure 12 is a schematic view of an exemplary system of the
invention showing the use of a wireless communications network for
communications between the Moderator"s adjunct computer and end
user meters.
[0016] Figure 13 is a schematic view of an exemplary system of the
invention showing the applicable DISCO for each set of end users
collecting the meter reading data from the meters of end users
participating in the auction service and transmitting such meter
reading data to the Moderator"s adjunct computer.
[0017] Figure 14 is a schematic view of an exemplary system of the
invention showing third party meter reading service entities
(independent of the applicable DISCOs) collecting the meter reading
data from the meters of end users participating in the auction
service and transmitting such meter reading data to the Moderator"s
adjunct computer.
[0018] Figure 15 is a schematic representation of an exemplary
method of the invention, including a billing capability in which
the Moderator can generate a bill for each end user.
[0019] Figure 16 is a schematic representation of an exemplary
method of the invention, including a billing capability in which
the applicable DISCO can generate a bill for each end user.
Detailed Description
[0020] The Energy Auction System (EAS) can be made available to all
end users of electric power or natural gas (and resellers of
either), but will function best for those end users who have meters
that can be read remotely by electronic means known in the industry
(e.g., with access via public or private wired or wireless
telecommunications facilities, coaxial cable facilities, power line
communications access, etc., whether using circuit-switched, packet
data, frame relay or asynchronous transfer mode networks or other
communications facilities utilizing known technologies). An
exemplary embodiment of the EAS system architecture is designed to
operate as follows:(i) Providers transmit their most economically
advantageous rates (or other economic incentives) as bids to the
Moderator;(ii) the Moderator processes these bids according to
specified rules of the auction to which all bidders agree, in order
to produce an apples-to-apples comparison of the rates or other
economic incentives offered by the bidders and, further, to
generate provider selection data pertaining to each end user or
group of end users (or each reseller or group of resellers)
associated with a particular control computer;(iii) the Moderator
transmits back to the bidders some or all of the bids received from
the other bidding Providers, giving them an opportunity to adjust
some or all of their bids;(iv)the Moderator transmits to each
control computer such rate information and/or provider selection
data as is relevant to the end user or group of end users (or
resellers) associated with that control computer;(v) using the
information received from the Moderator, each control computer
selects the Provider offering the lowest rate (or best economic
value) at that time to the end users (or resellers) associated with
that control computer (after applying any decision rules formulated
and inputted by the control computer"s administrator and/or
formulated and transmitted to the applicable control computer by
any end user or reseller) and transmits such selection to the
Moderator;(vi)for those end users or resellers not associated with
a control computer, the Moderator will perform all of the functions
the control computer would otherwise perform, including selecting
the Provider offering the lowest rate (or best economic value) at
that time to each such end user;(vii) the Moderator (or applicable
control computer) transmits a notification to the selected Provider
(which may also specify the estimated energy requirements of the
set of end users to be served) and, perhaps, copies of such
notification to the end user"s local energy distribution company
(DISCO) and to the respective Provider supplying power or natural
gas to this end user immediately prior to the start of energy
deliveries by the newly-selected Provider;(viii) meters at
subscribing end user sites periodically transmit reports of actual
energy usage to the Moderator (or an associated adjunct computer),
either directly or through the end user"s DISCO or a third-party
meter reading service entity;(ix) the Moderator (or an associated
adjunct computer) processes this meter reading data and transmits
to the respective Provider (and, perhaps, also to the applicable
end users or resellers) periodic reports of the actual energy used
by each end user or selected group of end users (or by customers of
a reseller) being supplied by that Provider;(x) these usage reports
may also be processed and transmitted by the Moderator to the DISCO
(or an adjunct computer associated with the DISCO"s power grid or
gas pipeline management and/or billing systems) for each end user
or group of end users (or resellers) in the service area being
supplied by a specific Provider or for all end users (or resellers)
in the aggregate (or any portion thereof) in that DISCO"s service
area, without necessarily sorting such end users (or by customers
of a reseller) by their respective Providers;(xi) based on such
usage reports from the Moderator, each Provider can adjust the
quantity of electric power or natural gas it supplies, by
generation/production or otherwise, to the power grid or gas
pipeline network, respectively, of the DISCO serving such end user
or selected group of end users (or resellers);(xii) applying the
actual energy usage data received from each end user"s meter and
the rate (or other economic incentive) offered at the time by the
winning bidder from among the participating Providers, the
Moderator (or an associated adjunct computer) can prepare and
transmit a billing statement for each end user or reseller to the
respective Provider and to such end user or reseller (unless the
Provider wishes to prepare its own billing statement for such end
user); and(xiii)for those end users or resellers who so elect
(assuming their selected Providers agree), the Moderator can
prepare and transmit to each end user or reseller a consolidated
billing statement, based on the actual energy usage data received
by the Moderator from that end user"s meter (or the meters of end
users served by that reseller) during an entire billing cycle and
the winning bid data relating to all selected Providers who
supplied electric power or natural gas to this end user or reseller
during that billing cycle (i.e., consolidating billable charges
from all Providers of electric power to such end user or reseller
on one bill and consolidating billable charges from all Providers
of natural gas to such end user or reseller on another bill).The
Moderator (or applicable control computer) will, in most cases,
transmit or make available to Providers (e.g., via an on-line
bulletin board or Internet website) the estimated energy
requirements of the end user or group of end users (or the reseller
or group of resellers) to be served before the Moderator (or
control computer) makes a selection of the Provider offering the
lowest rate (or best economic value) at that time to the applicable
end users or resellers, in order to give the Providers more precise
data on which to base their bids.Transmissions by Providers of bids
to the Moderator, transmissions by the Moderator of processed bid
data to relevant control computers and rate information to
Providers, transmissions by control computers of Provider selection
notifications to the Moderator, and transmissions by the Moderator
of winning bid notifications to selected Providers (and, perhaps,
to the relevant DISCO) can be made via data link, dedicated
facility or any private or public wired or wireless
telecommunications network. Similar means can be used for
transmissions by end users" meters of usage data to the Moderator,
for transmissions by the Moderator (or the applicable control
computer) of the periodic energy usage reports derived from such
meter reading data to the Providers, the end users (or resellers)
and the applicable DISCOs, and for transmissions by the Moderator
to the respective Provider of billing statements the Moderator
prepares for each end user or reseller.A control computer may be
operated by the Moderator, by an end user or reseller associated
with a control computer (e.g., by the energy manager of a large
industrial customer), or by the DISCO that distributes energy to
the end user associated with a control computer.End users can
participate in EAS even if they do not have meters that can be
remotely read by electronic means. Such end users can have their
meters read by on-site visits at the end of a billing cycle (or
more frequently, if necessary) and have the meter reading data
transmitted to the Moderator immediately thereafter (in lieu of
having a remotely-readable meter transmitting periodic energy usage
reports to the Moderator). Time-of-use meters will enable EAS to
accommodate many Providers for an end user during the same billing
cycle (e.g., peak v. off-peak usage), but switching to any new
Providers before the end of the billing cycle will not be feasible,
absent an on-site visit to read the end user"s meter before making
such a switch. End users who have meters that do not record actual
energy consumed by time of use, for example, may achieve a rough
approximation of time-of-use metering if participating Providers
agree to bill for usage based on usage profiling (also referred to
as load profiling in the electric power industry) for that customer
(i.e., estimating the end user"s actual energy usage hour-by-hour,
using historical usage levels related to the class of customers
into which this end user fits), an approach adopted by the
California PUC as part of its electric power deregulation
plans.BiddingThe Moderator will establish rules and standards under
which the auction process will be conducted. Some of those rules
will be set to enable the Moderator to compare competing bids on an
apples-to-apples basis, in order to determine the best economic
value being offered to end users. Bids submitted to the Moderator
must conform to such rules in order to be considered by the
Moderator. The auction rules may take into account such factors as
the difference in the nature of electric power generation and gas
supply. For example, the supply of electric power must be
controlled at the point of generation, while gas is capable of
being stored, the transmission pipelines themselves constituting a
significant storage medium. In general, the Moderator may require
bidders to formulate bids based on, for example, (i) a particular
period of time during which they will supply energy (e.g., the next
hour or the next 12 months), (ii) a specific end user (or reseller)
or a group or class of end users (or resellers) to whom they will
supply energy, (iii) a stated class of service they will supply
(e.g., uninterruptible v. interruptible, high-voltage v.
stepped-down service, etc.), (iv) whether they will supply 100% of
an end user"s (or reseller"s) energy needs during a specified
period or only supply up to a specific quantity of energy during a
set period, (v) a specific delivery destination (e.g., a grid or
pipeline interface of the end user"s DISCO at which the DISCO will
accept delivery of power or natural gas, respectively, from outside
suppliers), (vi) the estimated amount of the energy required on a
recurring basis by each applicable end user or set of end users (or
resellers), (vii) the frequency with which the bidder will receive
periodic feedback reports from the Moderator of actual energy usage
by the end users to whom the bidder wishes to supply energy - a
function primarily of whether the end users have remotely-readable
meters sending usage reports to the Moderator on a recurring basis;
and (viii) whether the end user (or reseller) will be billed
separately for each Provider"s energy or on a consolidated basis
for all Providers supplying energy to such end user (or reseller)
during the same billing cycle. A Provider may wish to formulate and
submit more than one bid for an end user or group of end users or
resellers (e.g., some end users may require more than one class of
service, others may require that electric power or natural gas be
delivered to more than one location, etc.).The competing Providers
bid for customers by transmitting to the Moderator the economic
incentive each Provider will offer for supplying energy to
different end users or groups of end users (or resellers). The
economic incentive presently contemplated as being most usual is
the rate (amount of money charged per unit of energy). However,
many other kinds of economic incentive may be offered, such as a
credit toward other services (e.g., frequent flyer points) or a
credit toward an additional rebate that may be offered if a user"s
energy usage for a given period rises above a threshold. The
economic incentive could be a combination of rate and another
incentive. But the economic incentive should be selected from a
limited set authorized by the Moderator, because the incentive must
be capable of being evaluated by the software in the Moderator or
its associated adjunct computer. Each bid is associated with a time
period within which the bid will be effective.The rules of the
bidding process related to such time periods can be structured in
many ways. The following are examples of such possible bidding
rules:(a) The day is divided into blocks of time by the Moderator
and bids are submitted for each block of time. All bids for a given
block of time must be submitted prior to a cut-off time that
precedes that block of time by a protection interval. Any bid
received after the cut-off time is considered to be effective for
the next block of time, unless a new bid is subsequently received
from the same Provider that would be applicable to the same end
user or group of end users (or resellers). The protection interval
applicable to bids to supply electric power, for example, is needed
to permit all of the following actions to take place prior to the
bid starting time: (i) processing of the bid information by the
Moderator and transmission to the relevant control computer; (ii)
selection of the winning bidder by the appropriate control computer
and transmission of that selection back to the Moderator; (iii) the
subsequent transmission of a selection notification to the selected
Provider (or its associated adjunct computer) and, perhaps, to the
DISCO serving the applicable end user or group of end users; and
(iv) the scheduling of the power to be delivered by the selected
Provider with the power grid controller(s) between the point of the
Provider"s generating facility (or the point at which the Provider
takes title to any purchased power to be delivered to the end user)
and the grid interface of the end user"s DISCO. For example, if one
hour blocks of time are auctioned, a 30 to 60 minute protection
interval may be appropriate The protection interval applicable to
bids to supply natural gas may be much longer due to the relatively
slow speed at which natural gas can be transported (when compared
to that for newly-generated electric power).(b) Providers are
permitted to submit bids for any time interval by specifying a
start time and a termination time. However, no bid can be effective
before a protection time interval specified by the bidding service
provider. The Moderator provides confirmation of received bids back
to the Provider if the data link from the Moderator to the
Providers is provided with a selective messaging capability.(c)
Providers may be permitted to enter default bids for any block of
time for which they transmit no other bid.(d) As a fail-safe
mechanism, to avoid use of old bids that have not been changed due
to communication failure, the Moderator may impose a rule setting a
time limit (a fail-safe protection time) to the applicability of
any bid. At the expiration of the time limit, the expired bid could
default to a preset default bid or to no bid. Such a rule could
also be built into a Provider"s adjunct computer to protect against
a failure in the Moderator-to-Provider data link.In formulating a
bid, a Provider will typically need to know the location of the end
user"s facility to which energy will ultimately be delivered. More
particularly, in most cases a Provider must know in which DISCO"s
service area the end user"s facility is located and, perhaps, in
which specific section of the DISCO"s service area that facility is
situated. Under most electric power deregulation efforts to date,
for example, a Provider will be required to pay open access
transmission fees to transport its power from its point of
generation (or the point at which the Provider took title to the
power, if it was purchased in the wholesale market) to the
interface at which the end user"s DISCO accepts power from outside
suppliers. For the last leg of the transmission path, from the
DISCO"s outside interface to the specific section of the DISCO"s
power grid within which the end user is located, the provider will
generally be required to pay a retail wheeling fee to the DISCO.
This fee may vary depending on which specific section of the
DISCO"s power grid is the destination for the power to be delivered
by the Provider. All of these transmission and wheeling charges
would be expected to be incorporated in any bid submitted by a
Provider to the Moderator. For end users with facilities at more
than one location (and, perhaps, situated in different DISCOs"
service areas), the Moderator can accommodate the submission of
composite bids by Providers, formulated by the bidders to cover
some or all of such locations.To give bidders more precise data on
which to base their bids, the Moderator can provide bidders with
historical usage profile information for participating end users or
groups of end users. The Moderator can update such historical
information on a continuing basis to assure bidders they have
current and reliable data. An end user who is a new subscriber to
EAS may be required to furnish the Moderator with at least 30 days
and as much as 24 months of historical usage data before the
Moderator permits that end user to participate in the auction.
Depending on the transmission and computer technologies used,
transmissions by the Moderator (or the applicable control computer)
to the Providers could also be accomplished by, for example,
posting the historical usage profile information on an Internet
website, bulletin board system or other similar facility, making
them available for retrieval by all Providers.The transmission of
bidding data from the Moderator to each of the Providers is
essential for the auction to function most effectively. This
feedback permits the Providers to adjust their own bids for any
particular end user or group of end users in view
of other Providers" bids for that same end user or group. In a
block of time bidding scheme, this transmission may take place, in
different service offerings, either before or after the bid cutoff
time for a given block of time. If transmitted before the cutoff
time, the Providers have an opportunity, up to the cutoff time, to
adjust their bids for that block of time. If the service is
arranged for transmission of such data back to the Providers after
the cutoff time, the Providers can adjust their bids for the next
or subsequent blocks of time. If the bids are transmitted back to
the Providers after the cutoff time but before the bid"s effective
time, the Providers would be able to manage their power generation,
gas production and/or energy provisioning activities to take
account of that time interval"s bid structure. The bids can be
adjusted to be higher or lower, depending on whether the Provider
wishes to further encourage or discourage additional energy
delivery commitments. The Provider may wish to reduce its bid, for
example, to stimulate additional delivery commitments or increase
its bid to discourage additional commitments. Depending on the
transmission and computer technologies used, transmissions by the
Moderator (or the applicable control computer) to the Providers
could also be accomplished, for example, by posting the bids on an
Internet website, bulletin board system or other similar facility,
making them available for retrieval by all Providers.Depending on
the particular implementation of the auction, it may be appropriate
to transmit all received bids to all Providers. However, each
Provider"s own bids need not always be transmitted back to it and
there may be Providers who focus, for example, on certain delivery
destinations or certain classes of end users (or resellers) and are
not interested in seeing bids from Providers serving other delivery
destinations or end users (or resellers). In any event, at least a
portion of the bids are transmitted to at least a portion of the
Providers in order to implement an auction.The bid information
being transmitted between the Moderator and the Providers is
sensitive business information and may need, under various
circumstances, to be encrypted. Depending on how the service is
arranged, there may be a need to protect the privacy of bids from
interception by other participating Providers or from interception
by non-participating Providers. Some of the most sensitive
information would be bid information sent from the Providers to the
Moderator and bid confirmation messages from the Moderator to the
Providers. Some less sensitive information would be the bids
transmitted back to participating Providers after the cutoff time
for a given block of time. There are several encryption schemes
known in the art for such use, including the RSA and PGP schemes.To
reduce the exposure of end users to the potential volatility of
prices offered via the auction, EAS will allow default Providers to
participate. If, for example, prices bid in the auction rise above
a fixed upset price previously agreed to by the default Provider,
the relevant control computer (or the Moderator) will select the
default Provider as the winning bidder. The Moderator may negotiate
with one or more Providers to serve as default Providers for EAS.
In the alternative, an end user or group of end users ( or a
reseller) may wish to specify to the Moderator that a particular
Provider be designated as that end user"s or reseller"s default
Provider (e.g., a Provider who has entered into a contract with the
end user to supply a significant portion of that end user"s
electric power or natural gas needs outside of the auction
process).The Moderator can accommodate end users (and resellers)
who wish to limit the group of Providers from whom the Moderator
will evaluate bids when a Provider is to be selected to supply
energy to such end users (or customers of such resellers). An end
user (or reseller) may wish to instruct the Moderator (or the
administrator of the control computer associated with such end
user) that energy be supplied to that end user only by Providers
specified by that end user (or reseller). The Moderator, in
compliance with this instruction, would include the bids of only
this set of specified Providers when generating provider selection
data in regard to such end users. In the alternative, this
instruction by the end user can also be implemented at the control
computer associated with that end user.EAS can also accommodate
those end users or resellers who wish to employ a strategy of
purchasing power or natural gas at the lower of the bid price in
the auction or the price they agreed to pay a contract Provider
under a term contract. This contract price would be transmitted by
the end user or reseller to the Moderator (or the applicable
control computer) and the Moderator (or control computer) would
include this contract price among the bids it evaluates when
generating provider selection data in regard to each such end user
or reseller. If the contract price is lower than all of the other
bids, the relevant control computer (or the Moderator) would select
the contract Provider as the Provider of choice for that end user
or reseller. If the contract price is higher than any of the other
bids, the low bidder would be selected as the winning Provider. The
contract price serves as a ceiling while the end user or reseller
can still capture the benefit of low prices made available via the
auction (e.g., at night when system-wide demands for power are
lower than during peak daytime periods). To ensure that this end
user or reseller can satisfy the volume commitments that would
likely be part of any attractively-priced contract, the Moderator
could enable this end user or reseller to designate from time to
time (e.g., during certain peak demand daytime hours) that the
contract price is to be treated as the low bid available to that
end user or reseller at that time. At other times the Moderator
will consider all bids submitted by other Providers as well as the
contract price.Most bidders participating in the auction would be
expected to supply 100% of the electric power or natural gas needed
by the end users for whom these bidders are selected as the current
Provider. Some bidders, however, may wish to submit bids to supply
a fixed quantity of power or natural gas to an end user or group of
end users (or resellers) during a particular period of time, rather
than commit to supply 100% of the power or natural gas this end
user needs or actually consumes. The Moderator can accommodate this
type of bid by prescribing standard units or blocks of power or
natural gas that Providers can use when formulating such bids. The
Moderator would consider such bids only for end users (or
resellers) who wish to participate and only as part of an auction
process in which the bids compared are those for identical units or
blocks of power or natural gas. In the event that insufficient
units or blocks of energy are offered, the Moderator could again
rely on a default Provider, either for 100% of the end user"s or
reseller"s energy requirements or only for the shortfall needed.An
end user or reseller could, under this approach, have more than one
Provider delivering power or natural gas to its facilities (or
those of a reseller"s customers) during the same period of time.
For example, a large end user with a need for 1000 kilowatts of
power during every hour between 8:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m., Monday
through Friday, elects to participate in EPAS under the above unit
or power block approach. Four Providers submit bids to supply (in
order of the lowest-priced bids first) 600, 200, 200 and 500
kilowatts of power for the period between 9:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m.
each day. The relevant control computer (or the Moderator) selects
the three Providers who bid 600, 200 and 200, respectively, on the
basis of their low bids and the amount of power offered.In another
example of the auction using units or blocks of power or natural
gas, the auction rules might specify that only one Provider (and,
perhaps, a default Provider to cover any shortfall) will be
selected for each end user or reseller from among those bidding to
supply blocks of power. In that event, in order to make its
selection of a Provider for each end user or reseller, the control
computer (or the Moderator) would only consider bids to supply
blocks of power or natural gas of sufficient size to fulfill 100%
of the end user"s or reseller"s projected power or natural gas
requirements or, at the election of the end user or reseller, some
lesser quantity of power or natural gas previously specified by the
end user or reseller, with the shortfall to be covered by the
default Provider. Under a block bidding approach, the end user or
reseller would likely be committed to a take-or-pay obligation with
each of the partial Providers, including the default Provider
covering any shortfall. Because electric power is fungible, as is
natural gas, the end user"s meter would not be able to distinguish
whether the electric power or natural gas supplied by one Provider
was consumed in its entirety while another Provider"s supply was
not. This unit or block approach would probably be practical only
for those large users or resellers who can control with some
precision how much power or natural gas they (or their end user
customers, if a reseller) consume at any time or have highly
predictable usage profiles on a recurring basis.If a Provider is
selected as the winning bidder, the Provider will be responsible to
schedule the delivery of its power or natural gas to the end user"s
DISCO during the period stipulated. For example, such a selected
Provider of electric power will notify the regional grid
controllers of the utility grids between the provider"s point of
generation, and the grid interface of the end user"s DISCO that the
Provider intends to ship power over their power grids. The Provider
will likely aggregate the quantity of power it needs to deliver to
each DISCO for the Provider"s end users in that DISCO"s service
area and arrange for its delivery as part of the same scheduling
activity. Resellers, traders and brokers are constantly engaged
today in scheduling power and natural gas deliveries as part of
their routine daily activities in the wholesale electric power
market.Monitoring Usage - Feedback to ProvidersOnce the Provider
has been selected, the Moderator (or applicable control computer)
can monitor the actual energy consumed by each end user by
collecting meter readings from the meter or meters at the end
user"s facilities. Most meters with remote reading capability today
can transmit usage reports to the Moderator every 15 minutes, if
necessary. Industry experts expect meters to be available soon that
will enable almost continuous (i.e., near real time) reporting of
energy consumption. Depending on the type of end user or reseller
and the needs of the Provider (and, perhaps, the end user"s DISCO),
the frequency at which actual usage reports should be fed back to
the selected Provider or DISCO will vary. For example, very large
users of electric power can create temporary imbalances in the
local power grid and contribute to meaningful fluctuations in the
aggregate amount of power required to be supplied by a selected
Provider to meet the needs of all of its customers in a particular
service area. The DISCO for that end user will also want to obtain
timely usage information in order to manage such imbalances on its
local grid effectively. Frequent meter readings would be desirable
for this type of customer. On the other hand, residential customers
as a group have fairly predictable usage profile patterns and would
require much less frequent monitoring. The Moderator will process
and transmit such actual usage reports at such frequencies as are
specified in the auction rules, with reasonable exceptions
accommodated at the request of the selected Provider or DISCO. In
addition, to facilitate such end user"s or reseller"s energy
management efforts, the Moderator (or applicable control computer)
can also transmit actual energy usage data (with or without current
information on bid prices) on a periodic basis back to the end user
or reseller (to be received by the end user"s meter or such other
terminal equipment as the end user or reseller may designate) or,
in the alternative, the Moderator (or applicable control computer)
can transmit such data to an electronic mail address or Internet
website designated by the end user or reseller.When meter readings
are received by the Moderator or applicable control computer, as
the case may be, it will process the actual energy usage data
collected, first sorting it by end user (and, if appropriate, by
reseller) and then, perhaps, aggregating this data by Provider for
each delivery destination this Provider serves. A delivery
destination for power may be the grid interface at which the end
user"s DISCO accepts power from outside suppliers or the section of
the power grid within the DISCO"s service area in which the end
user is located or at the grid interface designated by the
reseller, if applicable. A delivery destination for natural gas may
be the interface on its regional pipeline network at which it
accepts natural gas from outside suppliers. The Moderator can then
transmit to each Provider the applicable aggregated usage data (as
well as usage data on individual end users or groups of end users
or resellers) if the Provider so elects. Relying on this energy
usage data, the Provider can determine whether to increase or
decrease the aggregate amount of power or natural gas it delivers
to each delivery destination. The more frequent the energy usage
feedback from the Moderator, the more efficient the Provider can
become, eventually optimizing its generating or production capacity
and/or energy provisioning activities (i.e., its buying and selling
of power or natural gas in the wholesale markets).For those end
users without remotely-readable meters, the Moderator will be
unable to collect periodic reports of actual energy usage more
often than once a month, typically, unless more frequent on-site
visits are scheduled than is generally the practice in the industry
today. Feedback from these reports, once they are processed by the
Moderator, will be transmitted to the applicable Provider on the
same monthly basis. As a result, Providers will be more limited in
their ability to react in response to such feedback by adjusting
the quantity of electric power or natural gas they supply at any
time to the power grid or gas pipeline network, respectively, of
the end user"s DISCO. Providers will have fewer opportunities to
make optional and efficient use of their generating or production
capacity and/or energy provisioning activities. In contrast, if
these end users were to install remotely-readable meters, the
Moderator could collect meter readings once an hour (or more
frequently, if desired) and feed back the processed data to the
respective Provider shortly after receiving it, permitting
Providers to make frequent adjustments in the amount of power or
natural gas supplied, optimizing their capacity and provisioning
activities on a continuing basis. End users with such
remotely-readable meters should be more attractive customers for
Providers and, as a result, realize economic benefits not offered
to other end users.As deregulation progresses, state PUCs will
determine whether any DISCOs will retain their monopoly over meter
reading. The California PUC has already indicated that electric
power DISCOs in that state will lose their exclusive right to read
end user"s meters. It appears increasingly likely that most state
PUCs will reach a similar conclusion in order to give new Providers
a reasonable chance to compete with the incumbent utility (since,
in most states, each DISCO will be affiliated with its own power
generating entity as a direct competitor to other Providers).
However, in those states in which DISCOs retain their meter-reading
monopoly, the Moderator may arrange with the DISCO for periodic
transmissions to the Moderator of actual energy usage data
collected from the meter of each end user subscribing to EAS. In a
similar fashion, in those states where the PUC will permit
third-party meter reading service entities (independent of the
DISCO or any of the Providers) to read end users" meters, the
Moderator may arrange with this third-party service to obtain
actual energy usage data for each EAS subscriber. In the
alternative, the applicable DISCO or third-party meter reading
service entity may transmit these periodic usage reports directly
to the applicable Providers with copies, perhaps, transmitted to
the Moderator.In those jurisdictions where the DISCO does not read
the meters of EAS subscribers, the Moderator can provide the DISCO
with meaningful usage data feedback to enable the DISCO to manage
its local power grid or gas pipeline network efficiently. The
Moderator can process the meter reading data it receives from other
sources (e.g., remotely-readable meters transmitting energy usage
data directly to the Moderator or the applicable control computer
or third-party meter reading services transmitting the results of
their readings to the Moderator"s adjunct computer) and transmit to
the DISCO periodic reports of actual energy usage by each end user
or group of end users (or resellers) in the DISCO"s service area,
sorted by their respective Providers. The Moderator may also
transmit to the DISCO such energy usage data for all end users
and/or resellers in the aggregate (or any portion thereof) in
that DISCO"s service area, without sorting such end users or
resellers by their respective Providers. BillingBilling under this
disclosed invention could be handled, for example, by one of three
methods: (i) by the Moderator applying the historical bid data to
the energy used by each end user or group of end users served by a
reseller), as recorded by the meter of such end user, without
necessarily requiring the participation of the end user"s DISCO in
the billing process, (ii) by the DISCO reporting the energy usage
data of each end user to the Moderator (if the DISCO performs meter
readings for end users who are EAS subscribers or customers of a
reseller participating in EAS), and the Moderator then creating a
bill by applying the appropriate bid rates to the quantities of
energy used while those bids applied, sorted by the selected
Providers, or (iii) by the Moderator supplying historical bid data
to the DISCO"s billing computer for the period coinciding with the
end user"s or reseller"s billing cycle, and the DISCO"s billing
computer then creating a bill by applying the appropriate bid rates
to the quantities of energy used while those bids applied, sorted
by the selected Providers. A third-party meter reading service
entity instead of the DISCO could collect energy usage data and
transmit that usage data to the Moderator for the Moderator to
create a bill for each end user or reseller. In the alternative,
the third-party meter reading service could use the energy usage
data it collects, together with the Moderator"s historical bid
data, to create such a bill.Under one such method, the Moderator
(or applicable control computer) will receive actual energy usage
reports from each end user"s meter on a periodic basis, as part of
the Moderator"s role as an intermediary between end users (or
resellers) and Providers (and, perhaps to some extent, between end
users and their local DISCO). These meter reading reports will
provide the Moderator with the quantity of electric power or
natural gas actually consumed by the end user during each period
measured and recorded by the meter. Periods as short as 15 minutes
(and even shorter in the future) can be measured by meters with
time-of-use features. Such meters will enable the Moderator to
determine the precise amount of power or natural gas supplied to an
end user by each of many Providers during the same billing cycle.
For end users without time-of-use meters today (i.e., many small
businesses and most residential customers), the Moderator can
employ usage profiling to estimate actual energy usage from period
to period (e.g., hourly).Bid information submitted by participating
Providers to the Moderator in the course of the auction will be
stored for a period of time by the Moderator in its database (or
that of an associated adjunct computer). The Moderator will also
record and store in its database the identity of the Provider(s)
selected to supply power or natural gas to each end user or group
of end users during any billing cycle.With the relevant bid price
of the selected Provider and the actual energy usage data for the
period this Provider supplied power or natural gas to an end user
(or to customers served by a reseller), the Moderator can prepare a
billing statement for that end user (or reseller) and each of its
Providers during a billing cycle. Interim statements, covering any
period within the billing cycle, can also be prepared by the
Moderator. Billing statements, whether for the entire billing cycle
or any interim periods, can be transmitted by the Moderator to the
end user (or reseller) or the applicable Provider (or an adjunct
computer associated with the Provider"s billing system).Some
Providers may wish to prepare and deliver their own billing
statement for each end user or reseller, assuming the end user or
reseller is willing to bear the inconvenience of multiple bills for
electric power, for example, covering the same monthly billing
cycle (i.e., if more than one Provider supplies power to this end
user or reseller during that month). Using the energy usage data
collected by the Moderator (or DISCO) for each end user (or group
of end users served by a reseller) and transmitted periodically to
the Provider, that Provider could apply its appropriate bid rate to
such actual usage in order to render a bill for each such end user
or reseller. As an alternative that most end users or resellers
would likely find more palatable, the Moderator can install data
links or electronic interfaces between such Providers" billing
systems and the Moderator"s billing computer, enabling each
Provider to transmit billing information it prepared for each end
user or reseller to the Moderator. After receiving such billing
data from each Provider, the Moderator"s billing computer can
collate the Providers" data into a single integrated bill for the
end user or reseller.The end user"s DISCO may continue basing its
tariffed service charges to end users on the total quantity of
power or natural gas consumed during the billing cycle and, for
larger customers, the peak demand for power or natural gas from
each customer. If the Moderator or applicable control
computer(instead of the DISCO) is collecting actual usage data from
end users" meters, the Moderator can transmit regular reports to
the DISCO showing actual energy usage for any period measured by
each end user"s meter, including both the total energy consumed
during the billing cycle (or such other period requested by the
DISCO) and the peak demand for power or natural gas from the end
user, on an average or absolute basis.Under most states"
deregulation plans, as described above, PUCs are expected to give
Providers the right to read meters directly and not be required to
depend on the local DISCO to perform this function. In addition,
some states are expected to permit independent firms to provide
meter reading and billing services to Providers, end users and
DISCOs. The Moderator could collect actual energy usage reports
from such third-party service entities and prepare billing
statements for each end user or reseller and each of the selected
Providers supplying power or natural gas to that end user (or the
group of end users served by that reseller) during a billing cycle.
Interim statements could also be prepared by the Moderator. In
either case, the Moderator could transmit such billing statements
to Providers, the end user or reseller and, if necessary, the end
user"s DISCO. In any jurisdiction where the PUC or other regulatory
authority permits the DISCO to retain the exclusive right to read
end users" meters, the Moderator will arrange to receive the
relevant meter reading data from the DISCO. To produce a billing
statement for each end user and the applicable Provider, the
Moderator can process the usage data received from the DISCO and
match it up with the selected Providers" appropriate bid data
stored in the Moderator"s database. Again, the Moderator can
transmit billing statements to the end user or reseller and each of
the selected Providers. Such statements can cover the entire
billing cycle or any interim period. For the convenience of end
users or resellers, the Moderator can prepare a billing statement
that consolidates all of the end user"s electric power or natural
gas consumption (or, if for a reseller, covering all of the end
users served by that reseller) for the billing cycle and all of the
charges levied during that period by all of the selected Providers
for that end user or reseller (i.e., with one bill for electric
power and another for natural gas). Each Provider would receive
from the Moderator only the portion of this billing statement that
related to the power or natural gas supplied by that Provider.To
facilitate the entry of an end user or reseller (in either case a
Buyer) into a forward delivery transaction with a Provider (or a
reseller of another Provider"s energy supplies or services), the
Moderator will accommodate requests for future energy supply or
services (an RFS) from a Buyer. A forward delivery transaction is a
purchase transaction in which a Buyer and a Provider (or a reseller
of another Provider"s energy supplies or services) agree on all
material terms of the transaction at the time that transaction is
entered into, but delivery by the Provider of the energy supply or
service purchased by the Buyer is scheduled for a future time. That
future delivery may be set for any specific delivery time in the
future (for example, seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months
or years, or any combination thereof, after the time the
transaction was entered into by the parties). In the context of
this application, delivery means the Provider has made available to
the Buyer, either via a direct or indirect transmission by the
Provider to an appropriate interface with the local energy grid or
pipeline servicing the premises equipment of the Buyer (or, if the
Buyer is a reseller, to the designated interface with the grid or
pipeline serving the reseller"s end user customers) or some other
interface specified by the Buyer, such purchase having occurred at
the time the terms of the transaction (under which delivery is
being made) were agreed to by the Buyer and the Provider.Figures 1
and 7 illustrate exemplary systems for carrying out the herein
disclosed forward delivery transaction process. A Buyer formulates
an RFS and the Buyer"s computer 85,86 transmits this RFS to the
control computer 8 associated with this Buyer over a data link or
other telecommunications facility 87, and from the control computer
to the Moderator 1 over data link 7, as illustrated in Figure 1.
The Buyer"s computer 85,86 can, in the alternative as illustrated
in Figure 7, transmit the RFS directly to the Moderator via data
link 88 and the Moderator can incorporate any or all of the
functions of the control computer. In order to provide the control
computer and/or the Moderator with sufficient information to
process the RFS, the Buyer enters the information describing the
RFS on a software-derived template including, for example, the
delivery destination of the energy to be supplied. This template
may reside, for example, on a computer bulletin board or website
maintained by the Moderator (or the applicable control computer)
and accessible to Buyer.The software-derived template may call for
such things as: (i) the relevant future period for which service is
being requested (e.g., one or more specific hours, days, weeks or
months, or any combination thereof), (ii) the quantity of energy
required (e.g., kilowatt hours, megawatt hours, cubic feet, etc.),
(iii) any minimum quality criteria, (iv) the Buyer"s load profile,
perhaps with historical energy usage information, and/or (v) any
other elements necessary to provide prospective Providers with a
precise description of the future energy supplies or services the
Buyer is requesting and the specific delivery criteria required by
the Buyer.In many cases, the Buyer may wish to include in the RFS
the maximum price it is willing to pay a Provider for the energy
supply or service requested (e.g., per kilowatt hour or megawatt
hour of electricity or per cubic foot of gas, etc.). If the Buyer
so specifies, the applicable control computer or the Moderator
could use this maximum price as part of the selection process
without necessarily disclosing it to prospective Providers. If no
Providers submit RFS responses with prices at or below the Buyer"s
maximum price, the control computer or the Moderator could discard
all of the responses and let the Buyer decide whether it will
increase the maximum price and resubmit the RFS, it will abandon
the RFS process altogether, or it will wait and resubmit the RFS
again later with its previous maximum price. The Buyer could also
be given the opportunity by the control computer or the Moderator
to accept a price higher than the maximum price set by the Buyer as
part of the RFS. At any time prior to the Buyer"s transmission of
its RFS to the applicable control computer or the Moderator (or as
part of such transmission) and/or the processing of the RFS by the
control computer or the Moderator, the Buyer may transmit to the
control computer or the Moderator a set of decision rules
applicable to any particular RFS (or group of RFS"s) or to every
RFS submitted by the Buyer to be applied by the control computer or
the Moderator as part of the Provider selection process. For
example, if the Buyer wishes to limit the group of Providers from
whom it is willing to purchase energy, the Buyer can communicate
that preference to the Moderator, either as part of the RFS
transmission or as part of a previous transmission to the
Moderator. In this event the Moderator will make the RFS
information available only to that group of Providers preferred by
the Buyer. Responses to the RFS from other Providers, if any are
inadvertently received, will be discarded by the Moderator.Once the
applicable control computer or the Moderator receives the Buyer"s
RFS, the control computer or the Moderator further processes the
information submitted and converts the RFS into a format that the
Moderator can transmit to prospective Providers" computers or post
on a computer bulletin board or website accessible by prospective
Providers. This distribution or posting may occur immediately after
the RFS has been received and processed by the control computer or
the Moderator, or at some later time (e.g., according to a
designated schedule each day). In most cases, we would expect that
the Moderator would not reveal the identity of the Buyer to the
prospective Providers while the RFS is pending. Those prospective
Providers wishing to respond to the RFS will each formulate its
response, enter it (for example) on a software-derived template
(which could reside in one embodiment on a computer bulletin board
or website maintained by Moderator and accessible by the Provider)
and transmit it to the Moderator via data link or other shared or
dedicated telecommunications facility.Each Provider may be given
the opportunity to limit the list of Buyers to whom the Provider is
willing to sell energy supplies or services, and/or limit the
energy supplies or services the Provider is willing to make
available to any particular Buyer within one or more billing cycles
(e.g., to reduce the Provider"s credit exposure to that Buyer). The
Moderator and/or each control computer can maintain each Provider"s
list of approved Buyers, with or without applicable credit or
capacity limits. Updates can be transmitted by each Provider to the
Moderator at periodic intervals. If, for any reason, the Buyer"s
identity is revealed in the RFS information disclosed to
prospective Providers, each Provider can elect whether to respond
to the RFS. If a Provider were to respond to that RFS, any previous
credit or capacity limitations imposed by that Provider on that
Buyer might be deemed set aside, at least for that RFS-related
transaction.The Moderator (or the applicable control computer)
could also compare a Buyer"s RFS information to data submitted to
the Moderator by a prospective Provider before this RFS was
distributed or posted, assuming the Provider had indicated, for
example, its available energy supply and the price at which it
would sell energy to any pre-approved Buyer. If such a Provider"s
available energy supply and pricing matched the requirements of a
Buyer as specified in the Buyer"s RFS, the Moderator (or control
computer) could include this Provider as one of the respondents to
the RFS, notwithstanding the fact that the Provider did not respond
to the RFS after it was distributed or posted.As an alternative at
some time in the future, if and when Providers become more
comfortable posting data on their available energy supplies or
services with the Moderator before an RFS is posted, the Moderator
(or control computer) could use these pre-RFS submissions by
Providers as the primary or exclusive source of responses to the
RFS.When the Moderator distributes or posts an RFS, prospective
Providers will typically be given a deadline or cut-off time by
which they must respond to the Moderator. Any responses received by
the Moderator after the cut-off time will likely be discarded. From
among the responses received on a timely basis, the applicable
control computer or the Moderator selects the Provider offering the
best economic value to the Buyer, after applying the Buyer"s
decision rules, if any, and any additional determination criteria
governing like transactions and known beforehand by both Buyers and
Providers (e.g., historical performance by each Provider,
sufficiency of energy supplied by each Provider to the DISCO
serving Buyers in that region, etc.).To provide Buyers with the
assurance that at least one Provider will be available to supply
them with energy at a reasonable price, the control computer
administrator or the Moderator may arrange for a default Provider
from whom energy can be obtained under any of several scenarios
(for example, if the prices offered by bidding Providers rise above
a ceiling price specified by the Buyer).The Buyer can also provide
the applicable control computer or the Moderator with a decision
rule that directs the control computer or the Moderator to select a
particular Provider, regardless of how many other Providers respond
to the Buyer"s RFS or the attractiveness of the economic incentives
they offer. This approach enables the Buyer to purchase its energy
needs, for example, from a specific Provider with whom the Buyer
may have an existing contract relationship pursuant to which the
Buyer is committed to purchase from that Provider a certain
volume or proportion of its energy needs. This decision rule may be
operative based on one or more criteria, for example, time of day,
quality criteria, destination, etc. In some cases, the Buyer may
specify a decision rule that a certain Provider is to be selected
unless prices offered by one or more other Providers are
substantially better (e.g., 20% lower) than that offered by the
otherwise preferred Provider. With this flexibility, the Buyer can
take advantage of attractive prices and other benefits offered in
the spot market without giving up the reliability and price
stability offered by a term contract relationship with a primary
Provider. The control computer or the Moderator could then choose
the Buyer"s primary term contract Provider as the selected Provider
when appropriate under the decision rules set by Buyer.Once the
control computer or the Moderator selects a Provider to supply
energy or services to a Buyer, the Buyer and that Provider are so
notified by the control computer or the Moderator via electronic
transmission. In most cases this may also be the point at which the
selected Provider first learns the identity of the Buyer, unless
the Buyer has given the control computer or the Moderator
permission to reveal the Buyer"s identity to the Providers as part
of the RFS disclosure.After the selection of the winning Provider
has been made, the Moderator will transmit, to some or all of the
Providers who respond to the RFS, at least some of the bidding data
submitted by responding Providers (most likely without revealing
the identity of the winning Provider or that of the Buyer). This
feedback will enable the losing Providers to adjust their bids on
the next RFS distributed to them by the Moderator.If the Buyer and
all of the prospective Providers (within the Buyer"s preferred
group of Providers) agree, or the rules under which the Moderator
operates the bidding process so state and the Buyers and Providers
still decide to participate, the Moderator could provide feedback
to all bidding Providers of some or all of the prices bid by the
different Providers in response to any RFS (most likely without
revealing the identity of the winning Provider or that of the
Buyer). This feedback would enable the Providers, while the bidding
for a particular RFS is in progress and before a winner is
selected, to adjust their bids and submit amended responses to the
Moderator.The Moderator (or the control computer) may also provide
to the Buyer, before or after the Moderator (or control computer)
selects the winning Provider, at least some of the bidding data
from some or all of the Providers responding to the Buyer"s
RFS.Once the Moderator (or control computer) has selected a winning
Provider for the Buyer"s RFS, the Moderator (or control computer)
will transmit all or a portion of the transaction information to an
Adjunct Computer via data link or other dedicated or shared
telecommunications facility. This Adjunct Computer further
processes the transaction information in order to process the
energy usage data it receives from the meters of the end users to
be supplied by this winning Provider.This transmission of processed
energy usage data can be initiated by a query from the Moderator or
the applicable control computer to the Adjunct Computer or can be
downloaded at periodic intervals by the Adjunct Computer to the
Moderator or the control computer. All of the functions of the
Adjunct Computer can be performed by the Moderator, if use of an
adjunct computer is not deemed advantageous for any reason.The
Moderator and/or the control computer can communicate with one or
more adjunct computers, which each can communicate with one or more
end user meters. In the alternative, the Moderator can communicate
directly with one or more end user meters via a data link or other
shared or dedicated telecommunications facility.Different types of
energy services (e.g., power quality and other ancillary services)
as well as energy supplies may be provided by any Provider to any
Buyer. The term Provider includes any seller or reseller of energy
supply or services, regardless of whether that seller or reseller
owns or operates any energy generation, production, transmission or
distribution equipment or facilities.References herein to data
links or other shared or dedicated telecommunications facilities
may, for example, include any wireline or wireless facilities,
whether part of the public switched telephone network, private
lines, the Internet, coaxial cable, electric utility power lines,
Ethernet or other local area network (LAN), metropolitan area
network (MAN) or wide area network (WAN) connections.Some Buyers
may elect to submit an RFS that includes more than one request for
future energy supply of services, e.g., one RFS specifying several
delivery destinations, each with the same or different (i) future
periods for which energy supply or services are being requested,
(ii) quantities of energy required, (iii) quality criteria, (iv)
load profiles at each destination, and/or (v) additional energy
services to be provided. This composite RFS may also be submitted,
for example, for the same delivery destination, but for different
future periods. The Buyer may specify a maximum price it is willing
to pay a Provider for the composite of all the energy supplies
and/or services it requests in the RFS, or it may specify separate
maximum prices for each (or any other combination) of the elements
included in this RFS. Once the control computer or the Moderator
has selected a winning Provider for the Buyer"s RFS, the Moderator
will transmit (perhaps by way of one or more adjunct computers with
data links to the applicable Providers) selection notifications to
the one or more Providers from whom the Buyer will purchase the
energy supplies or services posted in the RFS. The control computer
or the Moderator can also transmit Provider selection notifications
to the Buyer informing the Buyer of the winning Provider or
Providers and any relevant transaction information.To facilitate
billing activity, the applicable control computer or the Moderator
could transmit detailed information concerning actual energy usage
for each Buyer to a Billing Computer immediately or at intervals
specified by the administrator of the control computer, the
Moderator or the Billing Computer, or by the Buyer or the selected
Provider. This data, or billing reports derived therefrom, could
thereafter be transmitted by the Billing Computer to the Buyer
and/or the winning Provider via data link or other
telecommunications facility. The functions of the Billing Computer
could, as an alternative, be performed by the Moderator (or the
applicable control computer). If billing for the particular
purchase transaction entered into by the Buyer and the Provider
does not require such detailed information (e.g., the Buyer
purchased a set amount of energy supply for a certain future
period, without regard to how many kilowatt hours are actually
used), the Moderator (or control computer) could facilitate billing
activity at any time (before or after the future delivery date
specified as part of the transaction) and without receiving
detailed energy usage data from the Buyer"s meter. In this case,
the Moderator (or control computer) would likely have all the
relevant billing data as soon as the Buyer and Provider entered
into this forward delivery purchase transaction.Description of
Figures and Exemplary EmbodimentsFigure 1 shows an exemplary system
for carrying out the herein disclosed auction process for the
provision of electric power or natural gas to end users (or
resellers) in which a Moderator 1 administers the collection and
dissemination of bidding information. The Moderator 1 includes a
computer with a processor and memory, together with input and
output devices to communicate with the Providers" energy management
computers 2, which are the source of the bidding information. By
means of these systems, the Providers bid to become the selected
Provider of electric power or natural gas for an end user or group
of end users (or resellers). The Providers transmit their bids from
their energy management computers 2 over data links 3, which may be
either analog (using modems) or digital. However, the information
is usually transmitted in digital form for input into the
Moderator. Each Provider has an energy management administrator who
enters energy management instructions into each energy management
computer 2 through an input port 4 by means, for example, of a
keyboard or a data link from a remote site or local computer. To
give Providers more precise data on which to base their bids, the
Moderator may transmit to Providers via data link some historical
usage profile information for participating end users or groups of
end users, particularly if an end user or reseller submits a
request for future service to the Moderator for a substantial
quantity of energy to be supplied in the future. The Moderator 1
receives the bids, processes them in its bidding processor 5 to
produce provider selection data, and enters both into a database in
its memory by means of the data buses and registers internal to a
computer. The bids are sorted according to delivery destination
within the respective service areas of the DISCOs for subscribing
end users. The Moderator 1 processes the bids to prioritize them
for each delivery destination, producing derivative data, including
provider selection data. This data can reflect, for example,
designation of a selected Provider and alternate Providers, based
on the Providers" bids to supply the power or natural gas
requirements of each end user or group of end users (or resellers).
The Moderator can also designate a default Provider in the event,
for example, the Provider selected by the bidding process has no
additional capacity available. The Moderator 1 transmits the
derivative data over a data link 7 to a control computer 8
associated with the end user or set of end users (or resellers) for
which the submitted bids are applicable.The control computer 8 can
apply decision rules, formulated and inputted by the control
computer"s administrator (e.g., the energy manager for a very large
end user), to the derivative data received from the Moderator 1 in
order to select a Provider. A control computer may be operated by
the end user or reseller, the end user"s DISCO, or the Moderator
(on behalf of the end users or resellers associated with that
control computer). In many cases, end users or resellers may prefer
to deal directly with the Moderator or may not wish to assume the
additional expense, if any, arising from the installation or
operation of a control computer. In that event, no control computer
would be required. As illustrated in Figures 7 and 10, the
Moderator can perform all the functions that the control computer
would otherwise perform, including the selection of a Provider
offering the lowest rate (or best economic incentive) at that time
to each such end user or reseller.As illustrated in Figure 1, once
the control computer 8 selects a Provider for an end user or set of
end users (or resellers), it transmits a notification of that
selection to the Moderator via data link 7, or perhaps via data bus
if the control computer is being operated by the Moderator 1. The
Moderator 1 then transmits via data link 3 a selection notification
to the selected Provider 2 and a specification of the estimated
energy requirements of the end user or set of end users (or
resellers) to be served. The Moderator will also transmit via data
link 9 a copy of such selection notification to the DISCO 10
serving the end user or applicable set of end users.The Moderator
1, perhaps using an adjunct computer 11, collects actual energy
usage data from the end user"s meters 12 via the public switched
telephone network 13. As illustrated in Figures 11 and 12, however,
end user meters 12 may communicate usage data to the Moderator"s
adjunct computer 11 via the Internet 14 (including posting such
usage data to a website from which the Moderator"s adjunct computer
can download this data) or via a wireless communication network 15.
Other networks, such as wide-area data networks or the
communications facilities of a DISCO"s local power grid, can also
be used.An adjunct computer is known in the art to be a computer,
closely associated with a primary computer, that provides the
primary computer"s operating software additional data or operating
logic to provide the primary computer with additional operational
capability. In the herein disclosed architecture, an adjunct
computer 11 can be employed, for example, to collect energy usage
data from end users" meters 12, process that data and transmit such
processed data to the Moderator 1, each end user"s current Provider
2 and the power grid or gas pipeline management computer and/or
billing computer of that end user"s DISCO 10. The adjunct computer
11 communicates with the Moderator 1 over a digital data link or
data bus 16. If the Moderator has enough processing capacity, the
function of the adjunct computer may be incorporated in the
Moderator"s processor and memory, the function being implemented in
the processor by appropriate software. The data link 16 is
illustrated as a dedicated transmission facility between the
Moderator 1 and the adjunct computer 11. However, any other
transmission technology offering a selective way to transmit data
from the Moderator 1 to the adjunct computer 11 may be used. (A
transmission facility is a telecommunication path or channel. It
may be, for example, a wired link, a radio channel in a wireless
system, or a time slot in a digitally multiplexed optical
transmission system).A computer adjunct to the computer system used
by a Provider and/or a DISCO to record and store the meter reading
data for all of the Provider"s and/or DISCO"s end user customers
(or perhaps belonging to an independent meter reading service
entity performing this function in place of the DISCO) can also be
employed to receive from the Moderator 1 or its adjunct computer
11, via data link 17, 18, the meter reading data measured by each
end user"s meter 12. The Moderator 1 also transmits at least a
portion of the received bids to the energy network management
computers 2 (or associated adjunct computers) of Providers over
data links 3. There are many transmission technologies available to
transmit this bid data to the Providers, including dedicated
bidirectional links between the Moderator and each Provider.The
data inputs and outputs of the Moderator 1, the control computers
8, the various adjunct computers, the energy network management
computers 2, the end users" meters 12 and the DISCO"s power grid or
gas pipeline management and/or billing computers 10 are implemented
by such devices as interfaces, registers and modems that are well
known in the art.Figure 2 illustrates a system architecture in
which the Providers" energy management computers 2 submit bids and
receive data transmissions from the Moderator 1 over dedicated
communications links 19. The control computer 8 receives rate
information and/or provider selection data and transmits Provider
selection notifications to the Moderator 1 over dedicated data
links 20. The Moderator can transmit such a notification to the
applicable Provider 2 over dedicated link 19 and to the applicable
DISCO"s power grid or pipeline management and/or billing computer
10 over shared data link 9.Figure 3 illustrates a system
architecture in which data communications between the Moderator 1
and the Providers 2, between the Moderator and the control
computers 8, and between the Moderator and the DISCOs 10 are
carried over shared data links 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26 in each
respective case. This could be accomplished, for example, by many
known local area network (LAN), metropolitan area network (MAN),
and wide area network (WAN) technologies.Figure 4 illustrates an
exemplary method of the herein disclosed invention in which
Providers formulate bids and transmit these bids 28 to the
Moderator. Upon receiving such bids 29, the Moderator processes the
bids to determine which bids apply to which set of end users
associated with each control computer 30, prioritizes the bids by,
for example, listing the lowest bid first (and then the next lowest
and so on) and generates provider selection data 31. The Moderator
then transmits 32 rate information and/or provider selection data
to each applicable control computer. After some initial processing
of the bids received, the Moderator also transmits 33 at least a
portion of the received bid information to competing Providers.The
control computer receives from the Moderator the rate information
and/or provider selection data, applies decision rules, if any,
that the control computer administrator has inputted, and selects
34 a Provider for each set of end users this control computer
serves. The control computer transmits 35 to the Moderator a
notification identifying the Provider that has been selected,
together with a specification of the estimated energy requirements
for the set of end users this Provider will supply. The Moderator,
in turn, will transmit 36 this information to a computer 37
associated with the selected Provider"s energy network management
computer and, perhaps, to the power grid or gas pipeline management
and/or billing computer 38 of the DISCO that serves as the local
energy distribution company for the set of end users to be supplied
by the selected Provider.Figures 5 and 6 illustrate an exemplary
system and
method of the invention in which the control computers 8 transmit
Provider selection notifications and specifications of estimated
energy requirements directly to the selected Providers via data
links 39 over an appropriate transmission system 40, 41 to each
Provider 2. Figure 6 also shows that the control computer may
transmit 42 Provider selection notifications and energy
specification data directly to the applicable DISCOs as
well.Figures 7, 8, 9 and 10 illustrate an exemplary system and
method of the invention in which the Moderator 1 incorporates all
of the functions of the control computers. As a result, no control
computers are needed in this system architecture. The Moderator
selects the Provider for each end user or set of end users (or
resellers), as illustrated in Figure 10. The Moderator then
notifies the selected Provider and the applicable DISCO of this
Provider selection and transmits to the selected Provider and the
applicable DISCO energy specification data for each end user or set
of end users to be served. In Figure 7, shared data links are used
for communication between the Moderator and the end users (or
resellers). In Figure 8, the Moderator communicates with Providers
and DISCOs via dedicated data links 19 and 43, respectively. In
Figure 9, shared data links 3 and 9 are used for communication
between the Moderator 1 and the Providers and between the Moderator
1 and the DISCO 10.Figure 13 illustrates an exemplary system of the
invention in which energy usage is collected from end user meters
12 by the meter reading department 44 of the DISCO serving as the
local energy distribution company for such end users. Transmission
of such collected meter reading data by the DISCO to the
Moderator"s adjunct computer 11 may be accomplished by any of
several wired or wireless telecommunications technologies well
known in the art.Figure 14 illustrates the same exemplary system as
Figure 13, with the exception that, instead of the meter reading
department of the applicable DISCO collecting usage data from end
user meters, that function is performed by a third-party meter
reading service 45 (independent of the DISCO).The Moderator, by
means of a billing processor, can prepare a billing statement for
each end user or reseller and transmit such statement via data link
to the selected Provider for that end user or reseller. This
billing processor receives from the Moderator"s adjunct computer,
via data link or data bus, processed meter reading data (including
actual energy usage data) for each end user. By accessing the
Moderator"s database, the billing processor obtains the stored bid
information for the bidder selected by the Moderator as the end
user"s or reseller"s Provider during the period of time for which
energy usage was measured by the end user"s meter (or the meters of
end users served by resellers). The billing processor matches this
information with the processed meter reading data for that end user
or reseller and creates a billing statement.As illustrated in
Figure 15, the Moderator"s adjunct computer 46 collects meter
reading data from each end user being served and correlates 47 that
usage data with the historical bid data of each of the Providers
that were selected to serve this end user during various periods
over the billing cycle. As a result of this processing, the
Moderator can generate a bill for each end user (or the applicable
reseller, if any).Figure 16 illustrates an alternative bill
generation approach, in which the DISCO serving the applicable end
user can generate a bill for that end user (or applicable reseller,
if any) if the DISCO is responsible for collecting usage data 48
from end user meters. In this exemplary system, the Moderator
transmits 49 to the applicable DISCO the historical bid data of
each of the Providers that were selected to serve this end user
during various periods over the billing cycle. The DISCO can
correlate 50 this bid information with the meter reading data it
collected from this end user"s meter during the billing cycle in
order to generate 51 a bill for this end user (or an applicable
reseller, if any).
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