A Choice of Platform:Excel® and Crystal Ball ®

Michael SchilmoellerThursday, December 2, 2010

SAAC

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Overview• The importance of transparency and

accessibility– Availability of diagnostics

• The topography of the RPM• High-performance Excel

– XLLs– Carefully controlled calculations

• Crystal Ball and CB Turbo• Olivia• The efficient frontier

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Observing States

Option Selection (integer)

FOM(R $M/ MW/ period)

Late Constr Costs (RL $M/ MW/ Period 2̂)

Earliest Availability (Period)

Regional Share

Retirement mothball life (periods)

Retirement evaluation cost (RL $M/MWPeriod)

Decommisioning cost (RL $M/MWPeriod)

First Period Mothball Costs(RL $M/ MW/ Period)

First Period Cancellation Costs (RL $M/ MW/ Period 2̂)

Generation technology Status

LT Fuel Price (Range name)

MTBR (weeks) FOR [0…1]

Nameplate (MW) - required for cost calcs of existing units only

256 0.01310136 0.002999913 100% 0.000448407 0 CCCT New 1 0.05 1

Criterion Set ID

Planning Periods

Early Construction Periods

Late Construction Periods

Development Costs (RL $M/ MW/ Period 2̂)

Mothball Costs (RL $M/ MW/ Period)

Cancellation Costs (RL $M/ MW/ Period 2̂)

Early Constr Costs(RL $M/ MW/ Period 2̂)

CancelThreshold (

Const Cost Escl (.01=1%/period)

ResourceLife (periods)

OptionLife (periods)

Market-driven ramp rate (MW)

Planned Development Costs (RL $M/ MW/ Period 2̂) Index

CCCT Criterion_004 0 4 6 0 0.000087896 0.021963468 0.00313711 -99999 0.000% 30 20 FALSE 0.0013258 0

Option Selection (integer)

FOM(R $M/ MW/ period)

Late Constr Costs (RL $M/ MW/ Period^2)

Earliest Availability (Period)

Regional Share

Retirement mothball life (periods)

Retirement evaluation cost (RL $M/MWPeriod)

256 0.01310136 0.002999913 100%

Criterion Set ID

Planning Periods

Early Construction Periods

Late Construction Periods

Development Costs (RL $M/ MW/ Period^2)

Mothball Costs (RL $M/ MW/ Period)

Cancellation Costs (RL $M/ MW/ Period^2)

CCCT Criterion_004 0 4 6 0 0.000087896 0.021963468

Decommisioning cost (RL $M/MWPeriod)

First Period Mothball Costs(RL $M/ MW/ Period)

First Period Cancellation Costs (RL $M/ MW/ Period^2)

Generation technology Status

LT Fuel Price (Range name)

MTBR (weeks) FOR [0…1]

Nameplate (MW) - required for cost calcs of existing units only

0.000448407 0 CCCT New 1 0.05 1

Early Constr Costs(RL $M/ MW/ Period^2)

CancelThreshold (

Const Cost Escl (.01=1%/period)

ResourceLife (periods)

OptionLife (periods)

Market-driven ramp rate (MW)

Planned Development Costs (RL $M/ MW/ Period^2) Index

0.00313711 -99999 0.000% 30 20 FALSE 0.0013258 0

C:\Backups\Plan 6\Studies\Model Development\Construction Cost Uncertainty\FixedCst_08.xls

Transparency

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Observed StatesManifest Capacity (MW) 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

NEW Cohort Cost ($M Real) 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 133.9 136.5 139.22 Status 0 0 0 0 0 6 3 32 Cost ($M Real) 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 133.9 136.5 139.2

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00141.8 144.4 147.1 149.7 152.3 246.5 340.6 434.7 524.7 614.7

3 3 3 3 3 6 6 6 7 7141.8 144.4 147.1 149.7 152.3 246.5 340.6 434.7 524.7 614.7

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 27284.76 28452.62 30000.00 23409.07 30000.00 30000.00 29112.87704.7 794.7 884.7 974.7 1367.7 1367.7 1367.7 1367.7 1367.7 1367.7 1367.7

7 7 7 7 5 5 5 5 5 5 5704.7 794.7 884.7 974.7 974.7 974.7 974.7 974.7 974.7 974.7 974.7

30-Per Life

27427.51 30000.00 30000.00 28187.09 27192.54 30000.00 25637.19 30000.00 27456.80 0.00 0.001121.3 1027.1 933.0 843.0 753.0 663.0 573.0 483.0 393.0 0.0 0.0

5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 9 9728.2 634.1 540.0 450.0 360.0 270.0 180.0 90.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

C:\Backups\Plan 6\Studies\Model Development\Construction Cost Uncertainty\FixedCst_08.xls

Transparency

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Overview• The importance of transparency and

accessibility– Availability of diagnostics

• The topography of the RPM• High-performance Excel

– XLLs– Carefully controlled calculations

• Crystal Ball and CB Turbo• Olivia• The efficient frontier

6

Layout of the RPM

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Logic StructureSource: Q:\MS\Plan 5\Appendix Model\AppL_060227.doc

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Overview• The importance of transparency and

accessibility– Availability of diagnostics

• The topography of the RPM• High-performance Excel

– XLLs– Carefully controlled calculations

• Crystal Ball and CB Turbo• Olivia• The efficient frontier

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High-Performance Excel

• XLLs – special dynamic link library (DLL) files containing both C/C++ “native” add-in functions via Excel “C” API and “flat” functions to control Excel memory

• Bypass Excel’s calculation tree– Strict enforcement of the calculation order

with Range.calculate method– Store function values for recall– Enable functions selectively

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High-Performance Excel(An Aside)

• Windows Server 2008 r2 provides an High Performance Computing (parallel-processing) add-on, now in beta 3

• The HPC initiative is aimed at Excel users and Excel 2010 has provisions for user to configure Server 2008/HPC for enhanced workbook performance

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Requirements

• Windows XP• Excel 2000 or better• COM Typelibs:

– NWPCC• Errdll.dll – error handling and reporting• NWPCC07Risk.xll – dispatch algorithms, etc.

– Microsoft:

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Overview• The importance of transparency and

accessibility– Availability of diagnostics

• The topography of the RPM• High-performance Excel

– XLLs– Carefully controlled calculations

• Crystal Ball and CB Turbo• Olivia• The efficient frontier

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Crystal Ball and CB Turbo

• It seemed like a good idea at the time….• The trials and tribulations of third-party

software• Current status

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Overview• The importance of transparency and

accessibility– Availability of diagnostics

• The topography of the RPM• High-performance Excel

– XLLs– Carefully controlled calculations

• Crystal Ball and CB Turbo• Olivia• The efficient frontier

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Olivia

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Olivia

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Olivia

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Olivia

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Olivia

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Olivia

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Olivia

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Olivia

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Olivia

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Olivia

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Overview• The importance of transparency and

accessibility– Availability of diagnostics

• The topography of the RPM• High-performance Excel

– XLLs– Carefully controlled calculations

• Crystal Ball and CB Turbo• Olivia• The efficient frontier

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The Efficient Frontier

• A device for filtering out “bad” plans (not to be confused with “bad” NPV outcomes)

• One plan “dominates” another if it is no worse in any regard, and better in at least one regard, than the other

• The bad plans are the dominated plans

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Evaluating Vaccines

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source: \EUCI 100323 Presentation\Efficient Frontier\EUCI 100323 01.xls

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The Efficient Frontier

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What does the Efficient Frontier Tell Us?• The Efficient Frontier does not

tell us what to do• The Efficient Frontier tells us

what not to do• Most useful if there are a large

number of choices

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Resources

• Fifth power plan• http://www.nwcouncil.org/energy/powerplan/5/(06)%20Risk%20Sect

ion.pdf• http://www.nwcouncil.org/energy/powerplan/5/(07)%20Portfolio%20

Analysis.pdf• http://www.nwcouncil.org/energy/powerplan/5/AppendixP.pdf• http://www.nwcouncil.org/energy/powerplan/5/Appendix%20L%20(P

ortfolio%20Model).pdf• Sixth power plan• http://www.nwcouncil.org/energy/powerplan/6/final/SixthPowerPlan_

Ch9.pdf• http://www.nwcouncil.org/energy/powerplan/6/final/SixthPowerPlan_

Appendix_J.pdf

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End