ABSTRACT
Summary: Even though many changes have happened to the electric power industry since the two fundamental Orders 888 and 889 were issued, FERC observed that there remained significant barriers to participate in competitive electricity markets and to reach the greatest possible economy. Inefficiencies in the reliability, operation, planning, and expansion of transmission grid, in addition to discriminatory conduct practiced by transmission owners against market participants motivated FERC to introduce the concept of Regional Transmission Organizations (RTOs) [Hoe99, Hog99, Mer00]. This chapter will review the essence of RTOs and bring together many topics that were discussed earlier in this book.
