| Capacity Market Design: Motivation and Challenges in Alberta’s Electricity MarketPeer-Reviewed Publication:
Brown, David. (2018) “Capacity Market Design: Motivation and Challenges in Alberta’s Electricity Market,” University of Calgary School of Public Policy, Briefing Paper Series.
Policy paper discussing Alberta's electricity market transition with a growing penetration of renewable generation in the form of either solar or wind. This paper went through the standard peer-review process.
University of Alberta | Publication | 2018-03-28 | Brown, D. |
| Simplified versus integrated market designs: A review of Alberta’s evolving electricity market"Simplified versus integrated market designs: A review of Alberta’s evolving electricity market" in Energy Regulation Quarterly. University of Alberta | Publication | 2026-03-25 | Brown, D. |
| Research Award - Assistant ProfessorsSpring 2019: Received the University of Alberta's 2019 Faculty of Arts Research Award for Assistant Professors University of Alberta | Award | 2019-03-11 | Brown, D. |
| Designing Incentive Regulation in the Electricity SectorWorking paper at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's (MIT's) Center for Energy and Environmental Policy Research (CEEPR).
The final version of this working paper will appear as a chapter in the forthcoming Handbook on Electricity Regulation, edited by Jean-Michel Glachant (Florence School of Regulation), Paul Joskow (MIT), and Michael Pollitt (University of Cambridge) and published by Edward Elgar. University of Alberta | Publication | 2025-03-07 | "David Sappington", Brown, D. |
| Electricity MarketsThis article is forthcoming as a Book Chapter "The Elgar Encyclopedia on the Economics of Competition, Regulation and Antitrust" edited by Michael Noel. University of Alberta | Publication | 2024-03-06 | Brown, D., Eckert, A. |
| Pricing Patterns in Wholesale Electricity Markets: Unilateral Market Power or Coordinated Behavior?Publication of our paper summary in conference proceedings at the IAEE Montreal Conference in 2019. Paper: "Pricing Patterns in Wholesale Electricity Markets: Unilateral Market Power or Coordinated Behavior?" IAEE Energy Forum, Summer 2019. University of Alberta | Publication | 2019-07-16 | Brown, D., Eckert, A. |
| "Imperfect competition in electricity markets with renewable generation: The role of renewable compensation policiesUniversity of Alberta's Resource Energy and Environmental Sociology Department Seminar.
Presentation: "Imperfect competition in electricity markets with renewable generation: The role of renewable compensation policies"
University of Alberta | Activity | 2018-09-21 | Brown, D., Eckert, A. |
| AESO 2023 Economics Excellence ConferencePresentation "Market Power Mitigation in Alberta's Electricity Market" at the Alberta Electric System Operator's (AESO's) 6th Annual Economics Excellence Conference, Calgary Alberta University of Alberta | Activity | 2023-09-26 | Brown, D. |
| ASSA Annual ConferenceAmerican Economic Association Annual Conference, Transportation and Public Utilities Group. Presentation: "The Value of Electric Reliability: Evidence from Battery Adoption" University of Alberta | Activity | 2022-01-06 | Brown, D., Lucija A Muehlenbachs |
| ASSA Conference: Electric Vehicles and the Energy Transition: Unintended Consequences of a Common Retail Rate DesignPresentation at the 2025 Allied Social Science Associations (ASSA) conference in San Francisco. Presented work: "Electric Vehicles and the Energy Transition: Unintended Consequences of a Common Retail Rate Design". University of Alberta | Activity | 2025-01-04 | Brown, D., Megan Bailey, Blake Shaffer, Erica Myers, "Frank Wolak" |
| Centralized versus Decentralized Demand Response: Evidence from a Field ExperimentSeminar presentation to the University of Alberta's Department of Resource Economics and Environmental Sociology. University of Alberta | Activity | 2023-03-17 | Brown, D., Blake Shaffer, Megan Bailey, "Frank Wolak" |
| Centralized versus Decentralized Demand Response: Evidence from a Field ExperimentConference Presentation at the "Advances with Field Experiments" at the University of Chicago. September 2023. University of Alberta | Activity | 2023-09-21 | Brown, D., Megan Bailey, Blake Shaffer, "Frank Wolak" |
| Computational Antitrust AchievementsPanel member for session on Computational Antitrust Achievements at the Computational Antitrust: Applying Antitrust 3.0 Conference, December 12, 2023 University of Alberta | Activity | 2023-12-12 | Eckert, A. |
| Demand Response in Electricity MarketsInvited presentation: "Demand Response in Electricity Markets" at the 7th Annual Electricity Policy Workshop held by the Ivey Business School at Western University. University of Alberta | Activity | 2023-10-16 | Brown, D., Megan Bailey, Blake Shaffer, "Frank Wolak", "Erica Myers" |
| DER Integration Panel at the Workshop on the Economics of Electricity Policy and MarketsWestern University Ivey Business School - DER Integration Panel. University of Alberta | Activity | 2021-10-13 | Brown, D. |
| Distributed energy resources, resiliency, and reliability. AESO's 4th Annual Economics Excellence Conference - presentation on distributed energy resources, resiliency, and reliability. University of Alberta | Activity | 2021-09-28 | Brown, D. |
| Does locational marginal pricing impact generation investment location decisions? An analysis of Texas’s wholesale electricity marketInternational Association for Energy Economist - Invited Presentation (Webinar) "Does locational marginal pricing impact generation investment location decisions? An analysis of Texas’s wholesale electricity market" University of Alberta | Activity | 2020-05-14 | Brown, D. |
| EPCOR: Electric Vehicles and the Energy Transition: Unintended Consequences of a Common Retail Rate DesignPresentation to EPCOR on our research "Electric Vehicles and the Energy Transition:
Unintended Consequences of a Common Retail Rate Design". Informal seminar. University of Alberta | Activity | 2024-12-11 | Brown, D. |
| Imperfect competition in electricity markets with renewable generation: The role of renewable compensation policiesUniversity of Auckland's Energy Centre - One-day workshop on energy economics and policy issues related to renewable energy.
Presentation: " Imperfect competition in electricity markets with renewable generation: The role of renewable compensation policies" (joint with Andrew Eckert) University of Alberta | Activity | 2018-08-01 | Brown, D., Eckert, A. |
| Information and Transparency in Wholesale Electricity Markets: Evidence from AlbertaIn this paper, we examine the role of information transparency in Alberta's wholesale electricity market. Using data on firms' bidding behavior, we analyze whether firms utilize information revealed in near real-time through the Historical Trading Report (HTR), which is released 10 minutes after each hour and contains a complete (de-identified) list of every firms' bids into the wholesale market from the previous hour. We demonstrate that firms are often able to identify the offers of specific rivals by offer patterns adopted by those firms. For one of these firms, these patterns are associated with higher offer prices. This is consistent with suggestions by Alberta's Market Surveillance Administrator that firms may be utilizing unique bidding patterns to reveal their identities to their rivals. We show that certain firms appear to respond to rival offer changes with a lag consistent with responding to information revealed through the HTR, and that they respond differently to different firms, suggesting that they are able to infer identification. However, we find limited evidence that firms respond differently to information disclosed in the HTR when one of the large firms in our sample utilizes its unique bidding pattern University of Alberta | Activity | 2018-06-02 | Brown, D., "James Lin", Eckert, A. |
| Information and Transparency in Wholesale Electricity Markets: Evidence from AlbertaInformation and Transparency in Wholesale Electricity Markets:
Evidence from Alberta
In this article, we investigate the potential impacts of providing too much information to strategic firms in restructured electricity markets using recent evidence from Alberta. This has important implications as regulators are aiming to increase information transparency as we transition to electricity markets with a higher penetration of renewable resources. We demonstrate that firms can potentially utilize this increased information transparency to elevate market prices.
University of Alberta | Activity | 2018-08-01 | Eckert, A., Brown, D., "James Lin" |
| INFORMS Conference - Load-Following Forward ContractsINFORMS Conference presentation - "Load-Following Forward Contracts". University of Alberta | Activity | 2021-10-24 | Brown, D., "David Sappington" |
| Ivey Energy Policy and Management Centre Annual Electricity Workshop 2022Keynote lecture: Unlocking Flexible Electricity Demand
Invited to provide the keynote for the Ivey Energy Policy and Management Centre Annual Electricity Workshop 2022. University of Alberta | Activity | 2022-10-18 | Brown, D. |
| Keynote Speaker - TAMIU ConferenceKeynote Speaker: "Electricity Market Design with a High level of Renewable Generation".
Conference: Texas A&M International University’s A. R. Sanchez, Jr. School of Business, 25th Annual Western Hemispheric Trade Conference. University of Alberta | Activity | 2021-04-16 | Brown, D. |
| Market Design for a High Renewable Energy FutureWorkshop at Stanford University with the Western Interstate Energy Board and Stanford's Program on Energy and Sustainable Development. Presentation on electricity market design options. University of Alberta | Activity | 2024-10-17 | Brown, D., Mark C Thurber, "Frank Wolak" |
| Market Power and Alberta's Electricity Market RegulationsI gave a talk at the AESO's Economics Excellence Conference related to my work "Evaluating the Impact of Divestitures on Competition: Evidence from Alberta's Wholesale Electricity Market." University of Alberta | Activity | 2022-09-27 | Brown, D. |
| NBER Data Infrastructure for Decarbonizing TransportationPresented research at the NBER Data Infrastructure for Decarbonizing Transportation Workshop. Presented our FES-funded project "Electric Vehicles and the Energy Transition:
Unintended Consequences of a Common Retail Rate Design". University of Alberta | Activity | 2025-03-13 | Brown, D. |
| New Frontiers in Electricity Market RegulationAustralian Competition and Consumer Commission and Australian Energy Regulator Annual Regulatory Conference (2018).
Presentation in front of 400 - 600 regulatory economist, government officials, and lawyers in Australia's energy and regulatory industry. I gave three talks on issues ranging from electricity market regulation of distributed energy resources, provider of last resort, and approaches to better integrate renewable resources. University of Alberta | Activity | 2018-07-26 | Brown, D. |
| Northwestern University SeminarAcademic Seminar Presentation of our work "Centralized versus Decentralized Demand Response: Evidence from a Field Experiment." Northwestern University's Department of Economics University of Alberta | Activity | 2025-05-14 | Brown, D. |
| NYU Institute for Policy IntegrityPresentation of "Take the Load Off: Effort and Technology as Determinants of Electricity Demand Response" at New York University's Institute for Policy Integrity. University of Alberta | Activity | 2025-12-11 | Brown, D. |
| On the network value of behind-the-meter solar PV plus storage: The importance of rate designUSAEE/IAEE North American Conference - Annual conference for energy economics society.
Presentation: "On the network value of behind-the-meter solar PV plus storage: The importance of rate design" University of Alberta | Activity | 2018-09-24 | Brown, D., Richard Boampong |
| On the System Value of Commercial and Industrial Behind-the-Meter Energy Storage plus Solar PV: The Importance of Retail Rate DesignAnnual University of Alberta's School of Business - Energy Economics conference. Audience: Business and government organizations.
Presentation: "On the System Value of Commercial and Industrial Behind-the-Meter Energy Storage plus Solar PV: The Importance of Retail Rate Design"
University of Alberta | Activity | 2018-10-03 | Brown, D., Richard Boampong |
| Penn State University SeminarPresentation at Penn State University. "Take the Load Off: Effort and Technology as Determinants of Electricity Demand Response" University of Alberta | Activity | 2026-02-20 | Brown, D. |
| Pricing Patterns in Wholesale Electricity Markets: Unilateral Market Power or Coordinated Behavior?Presented our paper "Pricing Patterns in Wholesale Electricity Markets: Unilateral Market Power or Coordinated Behavior?". University of Alberta | Activity | 2019-05-29 | Brown, D., Eckert, A. |
| Pricing Patterns in Wholesale Electricity Markets: Unilateral Market Power or Coordinated Behavior?Presentation at the 53rd annual meeting of the Canadian Economics Association, Banff, AB, May 31, 2019 University of Alberta | Activity | 2019-05-31 | Brown, D., Eckert, A. |
| Retail Rate Design in the Face of Growing Distributed Energy ResourcesPresentation: "Retail Rate Design in the Face of Growing Distributed Energy Resources"
90-minute presentation given to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission in Melbourne Australia. The presentation was a discussion of international approaches being employed to better integrated distributed energy resources such as rooftop solar panels and electric vehicles. Presentation broadcasted across Australia to all of the ACCC offices. University of Alberta | Activity | 2018-07-24 | Brown, D. |
| Show Me the Money! Incentives and Nudges to Shift Electric Vehicle Charge Timing - Camp PresentationPresentation at the University of Calgary's "Electricity Camp" in Banff Alberta. Paper: "Show Me the Money! Incentives and Nudges to Shift Electric Vehicle Charge Timing" University of Alberta | Activity | 2024-05-30 | Brown, D., Blake Shaffer, "Frank Wolak", Megan Bailey |
| Sloan Foundation, DER IntegrationModerator for a Panel on Distributed Energy Resource compensation policies - Sloan Foundation. University of Alberta | Activity | 2022-05-31 | Brown, D. |
| The Value of Electricity Reliability: Evidence from Battery AdoptionDepartment Seminar: University of Florida: "The Value of Electricity Reliability: Evidence from Battery Adoption". January 14th 2022. University of Alberta | Activity | 2022-01-14 | Brown, D. |
| The Value of Electricity Reliability: Evidence from Battery AdoptionIAEE Webinar - May 16th. Presentation: "The Value of Electricity Reliability: Evidence from Battery Adoption" University of Alberta | Activity | 2022-05-16 | Brown, D., Lucija A Muehlenbachs |
| The Value of Electricity Reliability: Evidence from Battery AdoptionUniversity of Calgary - Electricity Workshop. June 2022. Presentation: "The Value of Electricity Reliability: Evidence from Battery Adoption" University of Alberta | Activity | 2022-06-17 | Brown, D., Lucija A Muehlenbachs |
| The Value of Electricity Reliability: Evidence from Battery AdoptionCenter For Regulation and Regulated Industries (CRRI), Rutgers University, Western Conference. Presentation: "The Value of Electricity Reliability: Evidence from Battery Adoption" University of Alberta | Activity | 2022-06-22 | Brown, D., Lucija A Muehlenbachs |
| The value of electricity reliability: Evidence from battery adoptionPresentation in front of the United States Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on our research "The value of electricity reliability: Evidence from battery adoption" that has been accepted at the Journal of Public Economics. University of Alberta | Activity | 2024-09-25 | Brown, D., Lucija A Muehlenbachs |
| University of Alberta’s Business School Energy and the Environment ConferenceBrown, David. University of Alberta’s Business School Energy and the Environment Conference, Edmonton, Alberta, September 21, 2017
Conference presentation on the future of Alberta's electricity market, renewable penetration, and carbon pricing policies. University of Alberta | Activity | 2017-09-21 | Brown, D. |
| University of California at Davis SeminarSeminar Invitation at University of California at Davis. Presented "Take the Load Off: Effort and Technology as Determinants of Electricity Demand Response" University of Alberta | Activity | 2026-01-27 | Brown, D. |
| Unlocking Demand-Side Flexibility: Leveraging Price Signals, Market Design, and TechnologyKeynote lecture at the Alberta Market Surveillance Administrator's Annual Electricity Markets Conference. University of Alberta | Activity | 2024-10-30 | Brown, D. |
| “Unintended Consequences of Time-of-Use Rates: EV Charging and Distribution Network Constraints” - POWER ConferenceConference presentation at the University of California at Berkeley's POWER conference. University of Alberta | Activity | 2024-03-22 | Brown, D., Blake Shaffer, "Erica Myers", "Frank Wolak", Megan Bailey |
| Essays on Renewable Energy, Electricity Markets and Local Communities | Publication | 2024-04-16 | Boris Edgardo Ortega Moreno |
| Three Essays on the Electricity Market, Distributed Generation, and Retail Tariff DesignsPhD Thesis | Publication | 2024-04-30 | Yiang Guo |
| The Value of Electricity Reliability: Evidence from Battery AdoptionWe were invited to give a podcast based on our working paper "The Value of Electricity Reliability: Evidence from Battery Adoption" at Resources for the Future's podcast Resources Radio. University of Alberta | Activity | 2023-03-06 | Brown, D., Lucija A Muehlenbachs |
| Lessons from Texas' Electricity OutagesPublic Talk: Economic Society of Northern Alberta - "Lessons from Texas' Electricity Outages University of Alberta | Activity | 2021-04-05 | Brown, D. |
| Analyzing firm behavior in restructured electricity markets: Empirical challenges with a residual demand analysisJournal Article: "Analyzing firm behavior in restructured electricity markets: Empirical challenges with a residual demand analysis," International Journal of Industrial Organization.
Using data from Alberta’s wholesale electricity market, we demonstrate the challenges that can arise when characterizing a firm’s unilateral expected profit-maximizing offer curve. We illustrate that the residual demand curves faced by firms can be highly non-linear, resulting in non-monotonic, downward sloping, optimal best-response offer curves violating common restrictions imposed on bidding behavior. This can have important implications on the conclusions drawn from such empirical analyses. We identify features of residual demand curves that can lead to these problems, providing guidance to researchers utilizing these methods. We find that a simplified monotonic smoothing of the unconstrained ex-post optimal offer curve can achieve the majority of the expected profits, offering an alternative to calculating the ex-ante expected profit-maximizing offer curve that can be computationally burdensome. University of Alberta | Publication | 2021-01-06 | Brown, D., Eckert, A. |
| Are societies becoming proself? A topographical difference under fast urbanization in China"Are societies becoming proself? A topographical difference under fast urbanization in China"
Authors: Zhang Jingchao, Koji Kotani and Tatsuyoshi Saijo
| Publication | 2021-01-05 | Jingchao Zhang, "Koji Kotani", "Tatsuyoshi Saijo" |
| Capacity Payment Mechanisms and Investment Incentives in Restructured Electricity MarketsBrown, David. (2018). “Capacity Payment Mechanisms and Investment Incentives in Restructured Electricity Markets,” Energy Economics, 74: 131 - 142.
In this article, I investigate the impact of renewable penetration on the future of Capacity Payment Mechanisms, a common market design in restructured electricity markets.
Energy Economics is a top field journal in Energy Economics and Policy University of Alberta | Publication | 2018-08-30 | Brown, D. |
| Do Gentailers Charge Higher Residential Electricity Prices in the Texas Retail Electricity Market?Scholarly Publication: "Do Gentailers Charge Higher Residential Electricity Prices in the Texas Retail Electricity Market?"
Published: The Electricity Journal University of Alberta | Publication | 2022-05-01 | Brown, D., "Jay Zarnikau", "Chen-Hao Tsai" |
| Does Locational Marginal Pricing Impact Generation Capacity Investment Location Decisions? An Analysis of Texas’s Electricity MarketBrown, D., Zarnikau, J., and C.K. Woo (2020). "Does Locational Marginal Pricing Impact Generation Capacity Investment Location Decisions? An Analysis of Texas’s Electricity Market." Journal of Regulatory Economics. University of Alberta | Publication | 2020-08-26 | Brown, D., "Jay Zarnikau", "Chi-Keung Woo" |
| Electric Vehicles and the Energy Transition: Unintended Consequences of Time-of-Use PricingThis article has been Published at the American Economic Review: Insights. University of Alberta | Publication | 2025-12-01 | Brown, D., Megan Bailey, Erica Myers, Blake Shaffer, "Frank Wolak" |
| Electricity Market Design with Increasing Renewable Generation: Lessons From AlbertaThis article was peer-reviewed and has been Accepted at The Electricity Journal. University of Alberta | Publication | 2025-02-13 | Brown, D., "Derek Olmstead", Blake Shaffer |
| Employing gain-sharing regulation to promote forward contracting in the electricity sectorThis article was published in the Journal of Regulatory Economics in January 2023. University of Alberta | Publication | 2023-01-09 | Brown, D., "David Sappington" |
| Employing Simple Cost-Sharing Policies to Motivate the Efficient Implementation of Distributed Energy ResourcesBrown, D. and D. Sappington (2019). "Employing Simple Cost Sharing Policies to Motivate Efficient Implementation of Distributed Energy Resources" Energy Economics, 81: 974 - 1001. University of Alberta | Publication | 2018-12-10 | Brown, D., "David Sappington" |
| Evaluating the Impact of Divestitures on Competition: Evidence from Alberta's Wholesale Electricity MarketThis article has published in the International Journal of Industrial Organization. University of Alberta | Publication | 2023-07-05 | Brown, D., Eckert, A., Blake Shaffer |
| Evaluating the Role of Information Disclosure on Bidding Behavior in Wholesale Electricity MarketsThis article has been accepted and is forthcoming at Energy Economics. University of Alberta | Publication | 2025-05-01 | Brown, D., Eckert, A., Douglas Silveira, "Daniel Cajueiro" |
| Information and Transparency in Wholesale Electricity MarketsBrown, David and Andrew Eckert (2018) "Information and Transparency in Wholesale Electricity Markets", Journal of Regulatory Economics, 54(3), 292 - 330.
In this article, we investigate the potential impacts of providing too much information to strategic firms in restructured electricity markets using recent evidence from Alberta. This has important implications as regulators are aiming to increase information transparency as we transition to electricity markets with a higher penetration of renewable resources. We demonstrate that firms can potentially utilize this increased information transparency to elevate market prices.
University of Alberta | Publication | 2018-11-01 | Brown, D., Eckert, A., "James Lin" |
| Information and Transparency: Using Machine Learning to Detect Communication Between FirmsThis article has been published in the journal "Stanford Computational Antitrust". University of Alberta | Publication | 2023-10-18 | Brown, D., Douglas Silveira, Eckert, A., "Daniel Cajueiro" |
| Load-Following Forward ContractsThis article has been published at The Energy Journal in the Summer of 2022. University of Alberta | Publication | 2022-07-04 | Brown, D., "David Sappington" |
| Low-quality or high-quality coal? Household energy choice in rural BeijingZhang, J., Kotani, K., and T. Saijo (2019). "Low-quality or high-quality coal? Household energy choice in rural Beijing" Energy Economics, 78: 81 - 90.
Peer-reviewed publication in top energy-economics field journal.
| Publication | 2019-02-28 | Jingchao Zhang, "Koji Kotani", "Tatsuyoshi Saijo" |
| Market Structure, Risk Preferences, and Forward Contracting IncentivesThis paper has been Published at the Journal of Industrial Economics. University of Alberta | Publication | 2023-10-24 | Brown, D., "David Sappington" |
| Motivating Efficient Market Participation of Energy Storage AssetsBrown, D. and D. Sappington (2020). "Motivating Efficient Market Participation of Energy Storage Assets," Energy Policy, Forthcoming.
In this paper, we analyze regulatory policies designed to better integrate utility-scale battery storage (and solar PV) into restructured electricity markets. This allows utilities to unlock multiple value streams for these assets.
University of Alberta | Publication | 2019-10-01 | Brown, D., "David Sappington" |
| On the Benefits of Behind-the-Meter Rooftop Solar and Energy Storage: The Importance of Retail Rate DesignRichard Boampong and David Brown (2020) "On the Benefits of Behind-the-Meter Rooftop Solar and Energy Storage: The Importance of Retail Rate Design," Energy Economics, Forthcoming
In this article, we investigate the impact of retail rate design on the deployment of behind-the-meter storage plus solar technologies on commercial and industrial buildings. We consider recently proposed changes to California’s time-of-use pricing policy for commercial and industrial consumers which shifts on-peak prices from midday hours to the network constrained evening hours. We find that the shift in on-peak hours decreases investment in rooftop solar and has an ambiguous effect on storage investment.
We demonstrate that storage reduces utility network costs, but the magnitude of this effect varies critically with the prevailing retail rate structure. Importantly, we show that a shift in the on-
peak period to the constrained evening hours does not always elevate the avoided network cost associated with a battery system when demand charges are imposed on a consumer’s private
maximum demand. We illustrate that this issue can be alleviated by imposing demand charges
on consumption that arises in system-constrained hours. We find that cost-shifting concerns are
substantially reduced under the proposed rates and tariffs that have a heavy reliance on demand
charges. We illustrate that while storage reduces the utility’s costs, it can also increase cost-shifting
concerns. These findings demonstrate the potential trade-offs between maximizing avoided costs
and minimizing cost-shifting concerns under commonly employed retail rate structures.
This article has been published at Energy Economics, the top field journal in energy policy. University of Alberta | Publication | 2020-01-05 | Brown, D., Richard Boampong |
| On the Procurement of Storage as a Transmission AssetBrown, D. and D. Sappington (2020). "On the Procurement of Storage as a Transmission Asset" The Electricity Journal, Forthcoming. University of Alberta | Publication | 2020-01-03 | Brown, D., "David Sappington" |
| On the Profitability of Self-Sabotage"On the Profitability of Self Sabotage," Forthcoming in the Canadian Journal of Economics.
We identify conditions under which a supplier intentionally increases his expected production
costs or limits his ability to reduce these costs. Such self-sabotage benefits the supplier when
it induces a buyer to implement a more favorable procurement policy. We also demonstrate
how the systematic implementation of seemingly inefficient procurement policies can reduce
procurement costs by deterring self-sabotage. This analysis is motivated by the potential incentive for a firm to increase the cost of deploying distributed energy resources in favor of a traditional generation technology. University of Alberta | Publication | 2021-03-12 | Brown, D., "David Sappington" |
| On the Role of Maximum Demand Charges in the Presence of Distributed Generation ResourcesBrown, David. and David. Sappington (2018). “On the Role of Maximum Demand Charges in the Presence of Distributed Generation Resources,” Energy Economics, 69: 237 – 249.
Peer-reviewed publication in one of the leading journals in Energy Economics and Policy.
The article investigates the impacts of Maximum Demand Charges on investment incentives in distributed rooftop solar panels.
David Sappington is an Eminent Scholar in Regulation at the University of Florida. University of Alberta | Publication | 2018-02-02 | Brown, D., "David Sappington" |
| Optimal Policies to Promote Efficient Distributed Generation of ElectricityBrown, David. and David. Sappington (2017). “Optimal Policies to Promote Efficient Distributed Generation of Electricity,” Journal of Regulatory Economics, 52(2): 159 – 188.
This article investigates the design of compensation policies to promote distributed solar, storage technologies, and demand-side management.
David Sappington is an Eminent Scholar in Regulatory Economics at the University of Florida.
Journal of Regulatory Economics is a top field journal in regulation with the standard peer-reviewed process. University of Alberta | Publication | 2017-10-02 | Brown, D., "David Sappington" |
| Optimal Procurement of Distributed Energy ResourcesBrown, David. and David. Sappington (2017). “Optimal Procurement of Distributed Energy Resources,” The Energy Journal, 39(5).
The article investigates regulatory policies to procure distributed energy resources using cost-sharing contracts. These types of contracts are commonly employed in other industries. We advocate for their use in electricity markets and describe the essential design features.
The Energy Journal is a top field journal in Energy Economics.
This is joint work with David Sappington who is an Eminent Scholar in Regulation at the University of Florida. University of Alberta | Publication | 2018-07-23 | Brown, D., "David Sappington" |
| Pricing Patterns in Wholesale Electricity Markets: Unilateral Market Power or Coordinated Behavior?"Pricing Patterns in Wholesale Electricity Markets: Unilateral Market Power or Coordinated Behavior?" University of Alberta Working Paper.
Abstract:
Suspicions of coordinated behaviour may arise when firms are observed behaving in conspicuous ways that could be designed to communicate with rivals. .Unfortunately, the observation of anomalous behaviour not observed among firms not believed to be colluding is insufficient to conclude that coordination to increase profits above non-cooperative levels is taking place. A recent example highlighting these concerns involves the wholesale electricity market in Alberta, in which certain firms have been observed to use patterns in their bids into the market that could reveal their identities and convey information. In this paper, we develop an empirical methodology to examine whether observed offer behaviour by certain firms in Alberta's wholesale electricity market was consistent with firms unilaterally maximizing expected wholesale (spot) market profits, given the bidding behaviour of rival firms. We apply this methodology to hourly offer price and quantity data for the year 2013. Our results suggest that firms could have increased profits through unilateral deviations from their observed offers. For one of the firms, the potential to increase profits through unilateral deviations is greater on days in which certain offer patterns are observed, providing some support for the claim that such patterns may have played a role in coordinating on outcomes that are more profitable than noncooperative equililbria. These results suggest that regulators should exercise caution when undertaking policies that increase information disclosure in concentrated electricity markets where firms interact repeatedly.
Accepted at the Journal of Industrial Economics. A top journal in Industrial Organization. University of Alberta | Publication | 2022-03-26 | Brown, D., Eckert, A. |
| Procurement auctions for regulated retail service contracts in restructured electricity marketsThis article was published in Energy Economics in December 2022. University of Alberta | Publication | 2022-12-01 | Brown, D., Eckert, A., "Derek Olmstead" |
| Residential Electricity Pricing in Texas's Competitive Retail Market"Residential Electricity Pricing in Texas's Competitive Retail Market, under review at Energy Economics.
Using a large sample of residential retail electricity plans advertised on the Public Utility
Commission of Texas’s Power-to-Choose website from January 2014 to December
2018, our panel regression analysis finds changes in the projected wholesale price of
electricity not fully reflected as changes in these plans’ price quotes. The estimated rates of
wholesale price pass-through rates range from 43% to 45%. Retailers tend to charge risk
premia that increase with wholesale price volatility. Prepayment and time-of-use plans likely
contain price premia. The price premia associated with higher-than-average renewable energy
contents in the early years of our sample have largely vanished by 2018. Longer contract
terms come at a higher price. Finally, increased customer switching tends to reduce retail
price quotes, implying that Texas’s residential retail market can be made more price
competitive through consumer education on plan choices and dissemination of credible price
information. University of Alberta | Publication | 2020-10-01 | Brown, D., "Chen-Hao Tsai", "Jay Zarnikau", "Chi-Keung Woo", "Lucy Zhu" |
| Rising market concentration in Texas’s retail electricity marketJournal Article: "Rising market concentration in Texas’s retail electricity market" The Electricity Journal.
Abstract
In this paper, we document rising market concentration in Texas’s retail electricity market. Given recent acquisitions, we question whether a retail market with higher levels of concentration can continue to offer the low prices, an expansive array of creative pricing plans, and new consumer technologies that were promised when the forces of competition were unleashed twenty years ago.
University of Alberta | Publication | 2020-09-18 | Brown, D., "Jay Zarnikau", "Parviz Adib", "Chen-Hao Tsai", "Chi-Keung Woo" |
| Screening for collusion in wholesale electricity markets: A literature reviewThis article has been published in Utilities Policy in 2023. University of Alberta | Publication | 2023-12-13 | Brown, D., Eckert, A., "Dogulas Silveira" |
| Show Me the Money! Incentives and Nudges to Shift Electric Vehicle Charge TimingThis article has been published in the American Economic Journal: Economic Policy.
University of Alberta | Publication | 2025-01-29 | Brown, D., Blake Shaffer, Megan Bailey, "Frank Wolak" |
| Socioeconomic and Demographic Disparities in Residential Battery Storage AdoptionArticle Published in Energy Policy University of Alberta | Publication | 2022-05-01 | Brown, D. |
| Strategic interaction between wholesale and ancillary service marketsThis article has been published at the Competition and Regulation in Network Industries. University of Alberta | Publication | 2023-11-22 | Brown, D., Eckert, A., Douglas Silveira |
| Take the Load Off: Effort and Technology as Determinants of Electricity Demand ResponseRevise and Resubmit at Journal of Political Economy "Take the Load Off: Effort and Technology as Determinants of Electricity Demand Response" University of Alberta | Publication | 2026-02-18 | Brown, D., Megan Bailey, Blake Shaffer, "Frank Wolak" |
| The Impact of Load-Following Forward ContractsAcademic Article: "The Impact of Load-Following Forward Contracts".
Revise and Resubmit at The Energy Journal. University of Alberta | Publication | 2022-04-09 | Brown, D., "David Sappington" |
| The Impact of Wholesale Price Caps on Forward ContractingThis article is Published at The Energy Journal. University of Alberta | Publication | 2025-07-01 | Brown, D., "David Sappington" |
| The Price Impacts of Renewable Power: A Tale of Two Sources"The Price Impacts of Renewable Power: A Tale of Two Sources", International Journal of Industrial Organization, Journal Publication University of Alberta | Publication | 2026-03-12 | Brown, D., "Mar Reguant" |
| The Value of Electricity Reliability: Evidence from Battery AdoptionThis paper has been published at the Journal of Public Economics. University of Alberta | Publication | 2024-11-01 | Brown, D., Lucija A Muehlenbachs |
| Vertical Integration and Capacity Investment in the Electricity Sector"Vertical Integration and Capacity Investment in the Electricity Sector" joint with David Sappington.
Accepted Journal of Economics and Management Strategy. University of Alberta | Publication | 2021-09-01 | Brown, D., "David Sappington" |
| Wholesale price prediction: The role of information and transparency"Wholesale price prediction: The role of information and transparency", Energy Policy University of Alberta | Publication | 2026-02-01 | Brown, D., Eckert, A., Douglas Silveira |
| The Value of Electricity Reliability: Evidence from Battery AdoptionWestern University - Podcast "Ergs and Equilibrium". Discussing paper: "The Value of Electricity Reliability: Evidence from Battery Adoption". University of Alberta | Publication | 2022-05-12 | Brown, D., Lucija A Muehlenbachs |
| Using Machine Learning to Detect Tacit CollusionPodcast hosted by Stanford University Codex Center, Computational Antitrust project. University of Alberta | Publication | 2023-11-04 | Daniel O Cajueiro, Eckert, A., Brown, D., Douglas Silveira |
| Why are Power Prices so Darn High?University of Calgary School of Public Policy Energy and Environmental Policy Trends University of Alberta | Publication | 2022-04-20 | Blake Shaffer, Brown, D., Eckert, A. |
