An accurate picture of future power demand requires an accurate picture of future weather. For many companies power demand forecasts end up being based on last year's weather or "normalized" weather and this often proves to be inaccurate. With a commodity as volatile as electricity, minor miscalculations on the timing, magnitude and duration of demand changes can be costly.
Planalytics® ImpactPowerSM is a web-based planning tool that projects how weather will impact the demand for power
on a weekly, monthly and seasonal basis. Rather than basing demand projections on historical weather conditions that are unlikely to repeat themselves, ImpactPower utilizes Planalytics' proven year-ahead climate forecasting capabilities and advanced modeling technologies.
ImpactPower's analysis model isolates and quantifies weather's impact on demand and then projects it up to a year forward by incorporating long-range climate forecasts. The Power Weather IndexSM is ImpactPower's forecast of the weather-driven change in power demand for a period this year compared to the same period of the previous year. For example, a Power Weather Index for July of +7% is an indication that weather conditions this July will drive more power demand than the weather condition's did last July (warmer temperatures will result in higer air conditioning usage and power demand).
ImpactPower provides the Power Weather Index to clients through a variety of maps, graphs and tables. Clients can also download the information into spreadsheets or .pdf files.
Clients can specify the Power Weather Index they wish to view by selecting geographies (NERC regions, NERC subregions or major metropolitan areas) and time parameters (weekly, monthly or heating/cooling season)
Companies that generate, distribute, market or consume power can use ImpactPower to identify areas of opportunity and risk that result from changes in power demand. With advanced knowledge of increased or decreased demand in hand weeks or months ahead of time, clients are able to plan more effectively and make better financial, trading and operational decisions.
ImpactPower clients can use the Power Weather Index
to:
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decide when or when not to lock in forward prices
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more accurately project cash-flows, revenues, costs and earnings |
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optimize trading or hedging strategies for power and fuels
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determine contract requirements for interruptible and uninterruptible power
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decide when to generate excess power for sale or when to buy available generation
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determine generation, transmission or distribution requirements more effectively
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identify the best times to schedule plant maintenance or outages
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