FERC’s 2015 Energy Primer Examines Market Changes

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) posted an updated version of its free resource manual, Energy Primer: A Handbook of Energy Market Basics, on July 27.

Staff from the Division of Energy Market Oversight (DEMO), within the Office of Enforcement, developed this manual to provide the public with a broad overview of the physical wholesale markets for natural gas and electricity and energy related financial markets.

The new manual reflects the many changes that have occurred in the industry since DEMO developed the first edition of the primer in 2012. These changes include the growth in natural gas supplies and the expansion of organized electric markets under Independent System Operators (ISO) and Regional Transmission Organizations (RTO).

Highlights of the 2015 Energy Primer include:

• Updated figures and recent trends in U.S. natural gas and electricity markets;
• New maps of ISO and RTO regions to reflect physical changes in market areas, and updated descriptions of key features of these markets;
• An update on electronic trading platforms and exchanges, and the financial instruments used for hedging and arbitrage in natural gas and electricity; and.
• Expanded discussion of the anti-manipulation provisions of the Federal Power Act and the Natural Gas Act.

The authors note that, for those who are reading the primer electronically, market oversight pages can be found here.