PJM SAMPLE TEST REVIEW STUDY
GUIDE 2026 COMPLETE QUESTIONS
WITH CORRECT DETAILED
ANSWERS || 100% GUARANTEED
PASS <RECENT VERSION>
1. What does PJM stand for?
A) Pennsylvania-Jersey-Maryland
B) Pennsylvania-Jersey-Maryland Power Pool
C) Pennsylvania-Jersey-Maryland Interconnection
D) Power Joint Market
Explanation: While historically an acronym for Pennsylvania-Jersey-Maryland,
PJM is now the official name for the regional transmission organization (RTO) that
coordinates the movement of electricity in all or parts of 13 states and the District
of Columbia.
2. What is the primary role of PJM?
A) To generate electricity
B) To own transmission lines
C) To ensure the reliable and equitable operation of the bulk power system and
administer a competitive wholesale electricity market
D) To set retail electricity rates for consumers
Explanation: PJM does not generate power or own significant transmission assets.
Its core function is to be the independent system operator (ISO) and RTO for its
region, managing reliability and the wholesale market.
3. The PJM Day-Ahead Energy Market is primarily a:
A) Bilateral contract market
B) Financial swap market
C) Auction to commit units and establish locational marginal prices (LMPs) for the
,next operating day
D) Real-time power exchange
Explanation: The Day-Ahead Market is a financial auction where generation
resources are scheduled, and LMPs are calculated for each hour of the next day
based on offers, bids, and forecasted load.
4. What is the purpose of the Reliability Pricing Model (RPM)?
A) To set the price for natural gas
B) To ensure long-term grid reliability by procuring sufficient capacity resources
three years in advance
C) To price transmission congestion
D) To regulate the cost of renewable energy credits
Explanation: RPM is PJM's capacity market. It holds a Base Residual Auction
(BRA) three years ahead of the delivery year to procure enough capacity (MW) to
meet future peak demand plus a required reserve margin.
5. Which entity is responsible for the real-time operation of the bulk electric
system in the PJM region?
A) The Transmission Owners
B) The Reliability First Corporation (RFC)
C) The PJM Interconnection LLC
D) The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)
Explanation: PJM, as the RTO/ISO, has the ultimate authority and responsibility
for the real-time, second-by-second operation of the grid within its footprint.
6. The "Blue Sky" cutoff in the Day-Ahead Market refers to:
A) The deadline for submitting weather forecasts
B) The deadline for submitting virtual bids
C) The deadline for market participants to submit offers and bids
D) The time when market results are published
Explanation: "Blue Sky" is the industry term for the submission deadline,
typically noon the day before the operating day, after which no changes to Day-
Ahead offers and bids are allowed.
, 7. Which of the following is a key component of Locational Marginal Price
(LMP)?
A) Energy, Congestion, and Marginal Losses
B) Energy, Capacity, and Ancillary Services
C) Fuel Cost, O&M, and Profit Margin
D) Generation, Transmission, and Distribution Cost
Explanation: LMP = Energy Component (cost of generation) + Congestion
Component (cost of transmission constraints) + Marginal Loss Component (cost of
electrical losses).
8. What is the primary function of a Scheduling Coordinator in PJM?
A) To maintain the transmission towers
B) To act as the interface between a market participant and PJM markets
C) To schedule maintenance for generating units
D) To coordinate the activities of the PJM Board
Explanation: Market participants (like generators or load-serving entities) must
use a PJM-certified Scheduling Coordinator to submit offers, bids, and schedules
on their behalf.
9. A generator that is physically capable of producing energy but is not
currently under a PJM dispatch instruction is said to be in what state?
A) Synchronized
B) Decommitted
C) In the "Regulation" mode
D) In the "Self-Scheduled" or "Offline" state
Explanation: A self-scheduled unit is online and producing power based on its
owner's decisions, not in response to PJM's economic or reliability dispatch
signals.
10. The process of verifying that a generator can meet its economic dispatch
instructions is known as:
A) Telemetry
B) AGC
GUIDE 2026 COMPLETE QUESTIONS
WITH CORRECT DETAILED
ANSWERS || 100% GUARANTEED
PASS <RECENT VERSION>
1. What does PJM stand for?
A) Pennsylvania-Jersey-Maryland
B) Pennsylvania-Jersey-Maryland Power Pool
C) Pennsylvania-Jersey-Maryland Interconnection
D) Power Joint Market
Explanation: While historically an acronym for Pennsylvania-Jersey-Maryland,
PJM is now the official name for the regional transmission organization (RTO) that
coordinates the movement of electricity in all or parts of 13 states and the District
of Columbia.
2. What is the primary role of PJM?
A) To generate electricity
B) To own transmission lines
C) To ensure the reliable and equitable operation of the bulk power system and
administer a competitive wholesale electricity market
D) To set retail electricity rates for consumers
Explanation: PJM does not generate power or own significant transmission assets.
Its core function is to be the independent system operator (ISO) and RTO for its
region, managing reliability and the wholesale market.
3. The PJM Day-Ahead Energy Market is primarily a:
A) Bilateral contract market
B) Financial swap market
C) Auction to commit units and establish locational marginal prices (LMPs) for the
,next operating day
D) Real-time power exchange
Explanation: The Day-Ahead Market is a financial auction where generation
resources are scheduled, and LMPs are calculated for each hour of the next day
based on offers, bids, and forecasted load.
4. What is the purpose of the Reliability Pricing Model (RPM)?
A) To set the price for natural gas
B) To ensure long-term grid reliability by procuring sufficient capacity resources
three years in advance
C) To price transmission congestion
D) To regulate the cost of renewable energy credits
Explanation: RPM is PJM's capacity market. It holds a Base Residual Auction
(BRA) three years ahead of the delivery year to procure enough capacity (MW) to
meet future peak demand plus a required reserve margin.
5. Which entity is responsible for the real-time operation of the bulk electric
system in the PJM region?
A) The Transmission Owners
B) The Reliability First Corporation (RFC)
C) The PJM Interconnection LLC
D) The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)
Explanation: PJM, as the RTO/ISO, has the ultimate authority and responsibility
for the real-time, second-by-second operation of the grid within its footprint.
6. The "Blue Sky" cutoff in the Day-Ahead Market refers to:
A) The deadline for submitting weather forecasts
B) The deadline for submitting virtual bids
C) The deadline for market participants to submit offers and bids
D) The time when market results are published
Explanation: "Blue Sky" is the industry term for the submission deadline,
typically noon the day before the operating day, after which no changes to Day-
Ahead offers and bids are allowed.
, 7. Which of the following is a key component of Locational Marginal Price
(LMP)?
A) Energy, Congestion, and Marginal Losses
B) Energy, Capacity, and Ancillary Services
C) Fuel Cost, O&M, and Profit Margin
D) Generation, Transmission, and Distribution Cost
Explanation: LMP = Energy Component (cost of generation) + Congestion
Component (cost of transmission constraints) + Marginal Loss Component (cost of
electrical losses).
8. What is the primary function of a Scheduling Coordinator in PJM?
A) To maintain the transmission towers
B) To act as the interface between a market participant and PJM markets
C) To schedule maintenance for generating units
D) To coordinate the activities of the PJM Board
Explanation: Market participants (like generators or load-serving entities) must
use a PJM-certified Scheduling Coordinator to submit offers, bids, and schedules
on their behalf.
9. A generator that is physically capable of producing energy but is not
currently under a PJM dispatch instruction is said to be in what state?
A) Synchronized
B) Decommitted
C) In the "Regulation" mode
D) In the "Self-Scheduled" or "Offline" state
Explanation: A self-scheduled unit is online and producing power based on its
owner's decisions, not in response to PJM's economic or reliability dispatch
signals.
10. The process of verifying that a generator can meet its economic dispatch
instructions is known as:
A) Telemetry
B) AGC
