A structured inventory of the mechanisms through which power systems pay for, or require, the services that keep them running.

Keeping supply and demand in balance takes more than building enough power plants. Three things make it happen, and they do different jobs. System operation holds the system within its physical limits. Regulation sets the binding rules on who may participate and what they must do. Market design determines how services are procured and paid for.

Regulation and market design work together. Between them they reflect the value of a service, enable it to be supplied, and incentivize resources to provide it. Market design must deliver secure and affordable electricity even as the systems it governs change faster than most market rules were built to handle.

Stakeholders consistently identify market design as a key enabler of the future power systems.

The Future of Power Systems team would like to thank Doug Arent, Abhishek Banka, Martin Husson, Melissa Stark and Miguel G. Torreira for their valuable contributions and feedback.