Lessons and Experiences in the Implementation of a Consolidated Transmission Modeling Data System at ERCOT

On 1 September 2009, as part of a new node-based market implementation, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas transitioned from its then-prevalent data modeling processes to a new network model management system (NMMS) for model data management. This change represented the culmination of nearly four and a half years of planning and development. The NMMS provided several improvements over the then-current data maintenance processes. This paper describes some of the existing issues facing the power industry in the area of power system model data management and explains how solutions to these issues were addressed conceptually in the development of and incorporated into the final design of the NMMS. Further, this paper explains how these concepts of design and usability are now gaining wider recognition and acceptance from the industry.