Households' Perceived Value of Electrical Service Reliability

Households' Perceived Value of Electrical Service Reliability
Author: Michael J. Doane
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2008
Genre:
ISBN:

Energy analysts are often faced with the need to determine the value of electric service reliability in the absence of an explicit market for this service feature. One method for indirectly measuring consumers' valuation is called "contingent valuation" (CV). In service reliability applications, this approach involves the use of customer surveys in which respondents are asked hypothetical questions about how much they would be willing to pay (WTP) to avoid a power outage, or conversely, how much ompensation they would be willing to accept (WTA) to incur an additional outage. Typical outage conditions are defined by such attributes as frequency, season and time-of-day of occurrence, and duration, important aspects that directly influence resource planning and ratemaking.

Estimated Value of Service Reliability for Electric Utility Customers in the United States

Estimated Value of Service Reliability for Electric Utility Customers in the United States
Author: Michael J. Sullivan
Publisher:
Total Pages: 98
Release: 2009
Genre: Electric power transmission
ISBN:

Information on the value of reliable electricity service can be used to assess the economic efficiency of investments in generation, transmission and distribution systems, to strategically target investments to customer segments that receive the most benefit from system improvements, and to numerically quantify the risk associated with different operating, planning and investment strategies. This paper summarizes research designed to provide estimates of the value of service reliability for electricity customers in the US. These estimates were obtained by analyzing the results from 28 customer value of service reliability studies conducted by 10 major US electric utilities over the 16 year period from 1989 to 2005. Because these studies used nearly identical interruption cost estimation or willingness-to-pay/accept methods it was possible to integrate their results into a single meta-database describing the value of electric service reliability observed in all of them. Once the datasets from the various studies were combined, a two part regression model was used to estimate customer damage functions that can be generally applied to calculate customer interruption costs per event by season, time of day, day of week, and geographical regions within the US for industrial, commercial, and residential customers. Estimated interruption costs for different types of customers and of different duration are provided. Finally, additional research and development designed to expand the usefulness of this powerful database and analysis are suggested.

Estimated Value of Service Reliability for Electric Utility Customers in the United States

Estimated Value of Service Reliability for Electric Utility Customers in the United States
Author:
Publisher:
Total Pages: 125
Release: 2009
Genre:
ISBN:

Information on the value of reliable electricity service can be used to assess the economic efficiency of investments in generation, transmission and distribution systems, to strategically target investments to customer segments that receive the most benefit from system improvements, and to numerically quantify the risk associated with different operating, planning and investment strategies. This paper summarizes research designed to provide estimates of the value of service reliability for electricity customers in the US. These estimates were obtained by analyzing the results from 28 customer value of service reliability studies conducted by 10 major US electric utilities over the 16 year period from 1989 to 2005. Because these studies used nearly identical interruption cost estimation or willingness-to-pay/accept methods it was possible to integrate their results into a single meta-database describing the value of electric service reliability observed in all of them. Once the datasets from the various studies were combined, a two-part regression model was used to estimate customer damage functions that can be generally applied to calculate customer interruption costs per event by season, time of day, day of week, and geographical regions within the US for industrial, commercial, and residential customers. Estimated interruption costs for different types of customers and of different duration are provided. Finally, additional research and development designed to expand the usefulness of this powerful database and analysis are suggested.

Updated Value of Service Reliability Estimates for Electric Utility Customers in the United States

Updated Value of Service Reliability Estimates for Electric Utility Customers in the United States
Author:
Publisher:
Total Pages: 51
Release: 2015
Genre:
ISBN:

This report updates the 2009 meta-analysis that provides estimates of the value of service reliability for electricity customers in the United States (U.S.). The meta-dataset now includes 34 different datasets from surveys fielded by 10 different utility companies between 1989 and 2012. Because these studies used nearly identical interruption cost estimation or willingness-to-pay/accept methods, it was possible to integrate their results into a single meta-dataset describing the value of electric service reliability observed in all of them. Once the datasets from the various studies were combined, a two-part regression model was used to estimate customer damage functions that can be generally applied to calculate customer interruption costs per event by season, time of day, day of week, and geographical regions within the U.S. for industrial, commercial, and residential customers. This report focuses on the backwards stepwise selection process that was used to develop the final revised model for all customer classes. Across customer classes, the revised customer interruption cost model has improved significantly because it incorporates more data and does not include the many extraneous variables that were in the original specification from the 2009 meta-analysis. The backwards stepwise selection process led to a more parsimonious model that only included key variables, while still achieving comparable out-of-sample predictive performance. In turn, users of interruption cost estimation tools such as the Interruption Cost Estimate (ICE) Calculator will have less customer characteristics information to provide and the associated inputs page will be far less cumbersome. The upcoming new version of the ICE Calculator is anticipated to be released in 2015.

Contingent Valuation

Contingent Valuation
Author: R. Carson
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
Total Pages: 464
Release: 2012-01-01
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 085793628X

This major reference work the first of its kind provides a comprehensive and authoritative introduction to the large and growing literature on contingent valuation. It includes entries on over 7,500 contingent valuation papers and studies from over 130 countries covering both the published and grey literatures. This book provides an interpretive historical account of the development of contingent valuation, the most commonly used approach to placing a value on goods not normally sold in the marketplace. The major fields catalogued here include culture, the environment, and health application. This bibliography is an ideal starting point for researchers wanting to find other studies that have valued goods or used techniques similar to those they are interested in. For those wanting to conduct meta analyses, the book will serve as an invaluable guide to source material. For those wanting to conduct meta analyses, the book will serve as an invaluable guide to source material. In addition to the print edition we offer access, for purchasers of the book, to a website providing the contents of as a searchable Word document and in a variety of standard bibliographic database forms. Contingent Valuation is an indispensable reference source for researchers, scholars and policymakers concerned with survey approaches to the problem of environmental valuation.

Electrical Service Reliability

Electrical Service Reliability
Author:
Publisher:
Total Pages:
Release: 1978
Genre:
ISBN:

Electric-utility-system reliability criteria have traditionally been established as a matter of utility policy or through long-term engineering practice, generally with no supportive customer cost/benefit analysis as justification. This report presents results of an initial study of the customer perspective toward electric-utility-system reliability, based on critical review of over 20 previous and ongoing efforts to quantify the customer's value of reliable electric service. A possible structure of customer classifications is suggested as a reasonable level of disaggregation for further investigation of customer value, and these groups are characterized in terms of their electricity use patterns. The values that customers assign to reliability are discussed in terms of internal and external cost components. A list of options for effecting changes in customer service reliability is set forth, and some of the many policy issues that could alter customer-service reliability are identified.

Household Preference for Interruptible Rate Options and the Revealed Value of Electric Service Reliability

Household Preference for Interruptible Rate Options and the Revealed Value of Electric Service Reliability
Author: Michael J. Doane
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2008
Genre:
ISBN:

Unbundling the attributes of electricity service is increasingly being recognized as a promising approach for dealing with capacity shortages, cost recovery and specific customer needs. Chao and Wilson (1986) elucidate this approach using the example of priority service options, which allow for the explicit pricing of a particular attribute - service reliability. A simple form of the priority service option is the interruptible rate analyzed by Woo and Toyama (1986). Unbundling service attributes and incorporating them into service options and rate design is particularly important when customers are heterogeneous. Customer heterogeneity implies that different customers will have different preferences about service attributes. Thus, customers will deferentially respond to and benefit from alternative service options. For example, one customer may find service reliability crucial, hence an outage is very costly. This customer's "outage cost" will be composed of a dollar measure of the discomfort caused by the outage, in addition to any out-of-pocket costs borne to relieve the discomfort. Should this customer's "outage cost" exceed the bill discount offered with a particular interruptible rate option, he will not and should not subscribe to the service option if it entails more outages than his current (firm) service. On the other hand, another customer may not find an outage particularly onerous or costly.