A Cross-domain Approach to Analyzing the Short-run Impact of COVID-19 on the US Electricity Sector
Published in Joule, 2020
Recommended citation: Ruan, Guangchun, Dongqi Wu, Xiangtian Zheng, Haiwang Zhong, Chongqing Kang, Munther A. Dahleh, S. Sivaranjani, and Le Xie. "A cross-domain approach to analyzing the short-run impact of COVID-19 on the US electricity sector." Joule 4, no. 11 (2020): 2322-2337. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2542435120303986
Abstract. The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has rapidly spread around the globe in 2020, with the US becoming the epicenter of COVID-19 cases since late March. As the US begins to gradually resume economic activity, it is imperative for policymakers and power system operators to take a scientific approach to understanding and predicting the impact on the electricity sector. Here, we release a first-of-its-kind cross-domain open-access data hub, integrating data from across all existing US wholesale electricity markets with COVID-19 case, weather, mobile device location, and satellite imaging data. Leveraging cross-domain insights from public health and mobility data, we rigorously uncover a significant reduction in electricity consumption that is strongly correlated with the number of COVID-19 cases, degree of social distancing, and level of commercial activity.
Paper. Download paper here