A neutral party responsible for the management and control of the electric transmission grid in a state or region.

A voluntary organization designed to encourage open and non-discriminatory grid access. The ISO controls and operates the transmission systems of regional utilities so that generation companies can move (or wheel) power over the transmission lines. Actual ownership of the transmission facilities remains with the individual utilities, which continue to collect revenues and pay expenses related to the transmission assets.

ISOs are intended to respond to concerns that transmission owners will manipulate control of the transmission network in order to advance their own generation sales. To form an ISO, transmission owners would transfer operation and control (but not ownership) to an independent third-party. The level of independence and control are core issues in reviewing ISOs.

An independent organization whose objective is to provide nondiscriminatory and open transmission access to the interconnected transmission grid under its jurisdiction. Operation is in accordance with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission principles of independent system operation (This term is commonly used in California).

An independent system operator is envisioned by federal regulators and others to be an independent third party who will take over ownership and/or control of a region's transmission system for the purpose of providing open access to retail and wholesale markets for supply. (This is to be distinguished from a Regional Transmission Group or RTG which is a group of transmission line owners who proposed to cooperatively operate the regional transmission grid.)

An entity that monitors the reliability of the power system and coordinates the supply of electricity around the state.

An independent organization that is responsible for coordinating, controlling and monitoring the operation of the electrical power system in a particular geographic area; similar to Regional Transmission Organization

Independent manager of transmission lines to assure safe and fair transfer of electricity from generators to distribution companies.

An independent entity that controls the transmission system in a deregulated electricity system. ( Back)

An impartial, independent third party responsible for maintaining secure and economic operation of an open access transmission system on a regional basis. It provides availability and transmission pricing services to all users of the transmission grid.

An organization that operates an electric-transmission system that it does not own. Usually, the transmission system it operates includes transmission lines owned by more than one electric utility. An ISO's responsibilities include insuring that there is enough generation available at all times so that if one generating plant fails, others will pick up the load immediately without interrupting service to customers. Electric transmission systems do not have valves that can control the flow of electricity over the transmission lines. Therefore, an ISO operates the transmission system by controlling the amount of electricity that is generated at each point in the transmission system so that the transmission lines do not become over loaded. The abbreviation ISO sometimes refers to any ISO, and sometimes to refers to the California Independent System Operator.

(ISO) An organization created to control the operation of the power system, monitor reliability and coordinate the supply of electricity in a region.

(US) entity responsible for ensuring the efficient use and reliable operation of the transmission grid and, in some cases, generation facilities. Individual ISOs cover either a single state (eg, the California ISO) or a region (eg, the Midwest ISO). ISO responsibilities vary by jurisdiction, but can include co-ordinating scheduling for transmission transactions; overseeing the instantaneous balancing of generation and load; managing and redispatching generation in system emergencies; managing operating reserves; ensuring new transmission facilities are built when and where needed; and co-ordinating transmission payments. In some cases, ISOs are also responsible for managing power exchange activities.

Independent third-party with no financial interest in generation facilities that administers the operation and use of transmission systems owned by utilities. ISOs exercise final authority over the dispatch of generation to preserve reliability and facilitate efficiency, ensure non-discriminatory transmission access, administer transmission tariffs, ensure the availability of ancillary services, and provide information about the status of the transmission system and available transmission capacity. An ISO is regulated by FERC.

An independent, Federally regulated entity established to coordinate regional transmission in a non-discriminatory manner and ensure the safety and reliability of the electric system.

A neutral operator responsible for maintaining instantaneous balance of a grid system. The ISO performs its function by controlling the dispatch of flexible plants to ensure that loads match resources available to the system.

the ISO is the FERC regulated control area operator of the ISO transmission grid. Its responsibilities include providing non-discriminatory access to the grid, managing congestion, maintaining the reliability and security of the grid, and providing billing and settlement services. The ISO has no affiliation with any market participant.

An organization that is independent of any market participant and that has control of the transmission system, and has continuous, instantaneous information on the state of the transmission system.

An entity, as defined in AB 1890, responsible for operating the high-voltage electric transmission grid in a particular geographic area, as well as being responsible for scheduling power transmission and providing support services such as spinning, capacity reserve, and voltage support.

An independent third party that manages transmission systems owned by other entities.

An independent management team set up to run transmission systems owned by two or more entities. Under the arrangement, owners retain title to their assets and the ISO runs the systems as a joint operation. The ISO files a single transmission tariff for the region, plans and schedules transmission outages, takes a lead role in transmission system planning, collects transmission charges and makes payments to the actual providers.

An independent entity that operates the electric power grid to coordinate generation and transmission. For the New England states, it is ISO-NE.

A company or organization that would act independently of its parent company or organization to operate the power transmission grid for a specified geographic area, offering equal service terms to all users.

A non-profit entity established by AB1890 to operate the transmission system in a safe, reliable manner; one form of a Regional Transmission Organization.

Term used in U.S. jurisdictions for a bulk electricity system operator that is independent of other market interests. Similar to Ontarioâ€(tm)s IMO except that an ISO is not always a market operator as well.

An ISO is the entity charged with reliable operation of the grid and provision of open transmission access to all market participants on a non-discriminatory basis.

An entity that will monitor the reliability of the power system and coordinate the supply of electricity around the state.

An Independent System Operator (ISO) is an organization formed at the direction or recommendation of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). In the areas where an ISO is established, it coordinates, controls and monitors the operation of the electrical power system, usually within a single US State.