Alberta Electric System Operator

Alberta Electric System Operator

Company type	Non-profit
Industry	Electricity
Headquarters	Calgary, Alberta , Canada
Key people	Michael Law – President and CEO[1]
Services	Planning and operation of the Alberta Interconnected Electric System (AIES)
Website	www.aeso.ca

The Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) is the non-profit organization responsible for operating Alberta, Canada's power grid.^[2] AESO oversees the planning and operation of the Alberta Interconnected Electric System (AIES) in a "safe, reliable, and economical" manner.^[3][4] It is mandated by provincial legislation to act in the public interest and cannot own any transmission, distribution or generation assets.

One of AESO's responsibilities is to manage system load in the case where shortfalls in supply or excessive demand for electricity threaten the integrity of the power grid. In this case AESO can direct power companies to shed load temporarily through measures such as rolling blackouts. In July 2012, six power generators were shut down during a major heat wave that resulted in high demand on the power grid, Edmonton, Calgary, Red Deer and Lethbridge were hit by rolling blackouts.^[5] AESO directed utilities to reduce their customer load. AESO's Doug Simpson explained that this had not happened since 2006.^[5]

According to their homepage, AESO operates "independently of any industry affiliations and owns no transmission or market assets."^[3]