MISO's Role as a Grid Operator 

Managing the electric grid is similar to managing air traffic. Air traffic controllers are responsible for moving people from point A to point B safely and reliably 24/7/365. They don’t own the airplanes, they don’t own the runways, they don’t own anything.

Instead of moving people, MISO operators are responsible for moving electricity. From where it is generated, to your local utilities. MISO doesn’t own the generators, the transmission lines, or any part of the electric grid.

MISO’s role as a grid operator is to make sure the right amount of electricity is generated and transmitted to utilities reliably and at the lowest possible cost 24/7/365. Our member utilities ensure the power is delivered to their customers.

Understanding Power Grid Outages

In the airline industry, when scheduled planes can't fly, flights get canceled. Impacted passengers are temporily stuck. At the same time, air traffic controllers continung moving all available planes from A to B. 

In the energy industry, when generators and transmisison lines cannot deliver the electricity needed to meet demand, outages can occur. Impacted consumers find themselves temporarily without power. Fortunately, controlled outages on the bulk electric system rarely happen. They are implemented only as a last resort measure to protect the grid and ensure power keeps flowing to as many consumers as possible. In emergency situations on the electric grid, MISO operators determine when and where outages are necessary. Local utilities determine which customers will be impacted.