Nodal Training Progress Report

Over the last year, the Nodal Training team has been working diligently to develop and deliver training courses defined in the Nodal Market Training Curriculum designed to help market participants understand and prepare for the transition to the nodal market. The courses cover a wide range of subject matter in system operations, market operations and financial settlement in varying levels detail from the fundamentals of the ERCOT nodal market design to more detailed courses on the operation of the nodal market. ERCOT has currently completed 10 of the 15 courses scheduled to be offered during the transition period. For a list of courses currently available, please visit the Nodal Training page.

Offering courses that cover a comprehensive curriculum of nodal market topics early in the transition period and timed in conjunction with the transition phases is an integral part of the readiness effort for the opening of the nodal market. As shown in the table below, more than 2,800 market participants have attended ERCOT Nodal 101 and total attendance numbers are approaching 5,000. ERCOT is pleased at the large number of market participants who have attended training and continues to make these courses as readily available as possible throughout 2008. As the training team continues to roll out the more advanced courses, market participants should build on their early success by continuing to send their employees to the advanced courses.

Accountable executives charged with coordination of readiness efforts for each market participant should prepare and follow a training plan to send their employees to these training courses and report on their readiness to ERCOT. A recommended list of courses by market participant type is posted on the Nodal Training Readiness page. Based on these recommendations, it is up to accountable executives to determine the number of employees that should attend each course for nodal market readiness.

ERCOT sends quarterly reports to each accountable executive listing the employees that have attended the nodal training courses including statistics on completion. Accountable executives can request to receive the report more often by contacting NodalTraining@ercot.com or by calling (512) 248-3900. Completion of an ERCOT nodal training course includes attendance and passing end-of-course examinations where applicable. Accountable executives are highly encouraged to assure that their employees not only attend but complete the end-of-course examinations. ERCOT administers the examinations at the end of all instructor led courses. Exams are also available online via the ERCOT Learning Management System for those taking web-based training courses and those unable to take the end-of-course examinations in the instructor-led training courses. Most of the nodal training courses are certified for continuing education credit by the National Electric Reliability Council (NERC) and market participants interested in these credits must complete the courses by passing the course examinations.

The following summary includes the courses currently available, the number of classroom deliveries of each class and the number of market participants and ERCOT staff who have attended/completed each.

* Instructor-Led only / no exam
** Web Based Training only / no exam