51st State Ideas I Stewardship, Innovation and the Role of the Electric Utility in the 21st Century The current status quo of the US power industry "Natural monopoly" and the utility's essential functions The cost-of-service model: what should be included and what shouldn't For the 21st Century Utility, ABB Envisions Better Cooperation and Transparency The main function of the utility under ABB’s model is to provide a healthy, working grid. At the distribution level, the utility would operate and maintain the distribution system, enabling the integration and management of distributed energy resources at the grid edge. At the transmission level, the transmission system operator would be a separate entity from the utility wires company and its function as the distribution system operator, but both would work very closely in planning and operations, sharing information freely to enable coordination between centralized and distributed resources. On the generation side of ABB’s model, utilities could participate in DER procurement on a competitive playing field, allowing them to meet societal objectives in the most cost-effective way. Author: Bob Fesmire, with contributions from Gary Rackliffe and Asaf Nagler, ABB This report was not written by or originated from any member of SEPA staff and SEPA does not endorse any opinions expressed in this paper. 51st State Ideas I Stewardship, Innovation and the Role of the Electric Utility in the 21st Century Research report Name* First Last Email* Company*Title*Phone (Optional)Job Function*AdministrationBusiness DevelopmentCustomer RelationsDistributionEngineering & TechnicalGeneration & TransmissionPlanningProjects & ProgramsRegulatory, Policy & LegalOtherJob Level*C-levelVice PresidentDirectorManagerProfessional Sign me up to receive updates on Grid Integration and Regulatory & Business Innovation?