Prepared by Michael C. Ferris, University of Wisconsin (summarizing comments from workshop participants). 

A workshop related to Optimization and Equilibrium in Energy Economics was held at IPAM on January 11-15, 2016. It was based on the premise that design and decision problems in electrical power systems and markets can only be addressed effectively when tools from several disciplines are brought to bear. Successful design and operation of the electrical power grid and the market for electrical power can lead to billions of dollars in savings, but they require expertise from optimization, data analysis, economics and computational mathematics, as well as close interaction with power systems engineers and energy economists. The workshop brought together experts in each of these domains, as well as key researchers who work at the intersection of these disciplines.

The meeting focused on mathematical topics related to optimization and equilibrium in energy economics.   There was strong consensus that these topics are significant for the industry and that mathematical approaches could have impact provided the research was carried out in collaboration with power system engineers and economists.

The broad consensus of the meeting was that there are a number of potential technical breakthroughs in mathematical programming within three focus areas that would result in being able to answer very challenging questions.  Read the full report.