Node Load Available Transfer Capacity

Units:MW
Mode:Output Only
Multi-band:False
Default Value:
Validation Rule:
Key Property:No
Description:The maximum amount of additional MW load that is possible between this node and the slack bus(es).

Node Load Available Transfer Capacity is the maximum amount of additional MW load that is possible between this node and the slack bus(es)..

For further technical details on the calculation, please refer to the following link: :

  PLEXOS ATC Calculation

The calculation of this output property is conditional on:

1. Transmission Detail being Nodal.

2. Transmission OPF Method being Fixed Shift Factor.

The calculation of this output property is activated by setting Enable ATC Calculation to "Load ATC" or "Both".

While it is not recommended that both the Generation ATC and Load ATC calculations are enabled simultaneously (i.e., the Enable ATC Calculation is set to Both), the correct Slack Bus choice in such a case is "Single Slack Bus". On the other hand, the recommended Slack Bus choices for Generation ATC and Load ATC are "Distributed Slack (Reference Load)"" and "Distributed Slack (Generation Capacity)", respectively.

When this output property is used in conjunction with Enable ATC Calculation and ATC Reports, two diagnostic files are prepared:

1. ATCLimitingElementsReport.csv:

It lists the top N limiting elements (line/transformer/interface) for each node for each user-specified period. It also lists other details, including the associated limiting element’s rank, name, and type; event name; PTDF/OTDF; and ATC type and value, as shown below.

2. ATCMinMaxReport.csv:

It lists the minimum, maximum, and standard deviation of the ATC for each selected node (spanning the simulation horizon) and the corresponding timestamps, as shown below.

Finally, the following undocumented parameters are used to control the contents of ATCLimitingElementsReport.csv:

Transmission_ATCLimitingElementCount specifies how many top limiting elements are to be reported for a node.

Transmission_ATCPTDFThreshold specifies the PTDF threshold for a limiting element to be included in the report with respect to a selected node.

Transmission_ATCStepList and Transmission_ATCPeriodList specify the steps and periods therein for which the report is to be prepared. For example, given the specification below, the report would be prepared for step 2, period 1 and step 4, period 2.