A model for efficient consumer pricing schemes in electricity markets

Suppliers in competitive electricity markets regularly respond to prices that change hour by hour or even more frequently, but most consumers respond to price changes on a very different time scale, i.e., they observe and respond to changes in price as reflected on their monthly bills. In this paper, we examine mixed complementarity programming models of equilibrium that can bridge the speed of response gap between suppliers and consumers yet adhere to the principle of marginal cost pricing of electricity. We develop a computable equilibrium model to estimate ex ante time-of-use (TOU) prices for a retail electricity market. It is intended that the proposed models would be useful 1) for jurisdictions (e.g., Ontario) where consumers' prices are regulated, but suppliers offer into a competitive market, 2) for forecasting forward prices in unregulated markets, and 3) in evaluation and welfare analysis of the policies regarding regulated TOU pricing compared to regulated single pricing.