TEA's Slice Optimizer will compete against international projects for the Franz Edelman Award for Achievement in Operations Research.

(JACKSONVILLE, FL- DECEMBER 23, 2013)The Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS) announced that it has chosen The Energy Authority (TEA) as one of six finalist organizations that will compete for the world's top prize in Analytics and Operational Research-- the Franz Edelman Award for Achievement in Operations Research and the Management Sciences. The award is respected as the world's most prestigious recognition for excellence in applying advanced analytics to benefit business and humanitarian outcomes while transforming companies, entire industries and people's lives. TEA was selected for its Hydroelectric Generation and Water Routing Optimizer, a software tool developed to manage hydroelectric generation along the Columbia River for TEA's BPA Slice clients.

Finalists were chosen from a pool of more than a dozen international entries after a rigorous review by accomplished verifiers, all of whom have led successful analytics projects at major business, healthcare and government institutions worldwide. Finalists are chosen on the merits of how analytics methodologies were applied to solve problems, reduce costs, or otherwise improve results in real-world environments. Using advanced analytical methods, finalist teams were instrumental in helping their respective institutions make better decisions, providing a disciplined way by which management can improve organizational performance in a wide variety of situations.

"We are thrilled to see TEA recognized at the highest level for the quality of tools we develop to bring value to our clients. The Optimizer has produced greater efficiency and speed, reduced volatility, and increased environmental and economic benefit for public power utilities in the Pacific Northwest, where hydropower supplies approximately 80% of electricity needs. The development and implementation of such advanced technology speaks volumes about the quality of talent at TEA-that talent is used in service of public power every day," said Joanie Teofilo, TEA's President & CEO.

The 2014 Edelman winner will be announced at a special awards banquet on March 31st during the INFORMS Conference on Business Analytics & Operations Research in Boston. Past winners of the INFORMS Franz Edelman prize include HP; MISO, the Midwest energy group; Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center; and Netherlands Railways. Additional information about the INFORMS Franz Edelman Competition can be found online at https://www.informs.org/Recognize-Excellence/Franz-Edelman-Award.

INFORMS is the leading professional society made up of the foremost minds in the world of analytics. More than 10,000 members worldwide, including Nobel Prize laureates, turn to INFORMS to provide leading industry best practices, training and events focused on data analytics and operations research. Members of INFORMS work in business, government and academia and represent fields as diverse as airlines, health care, law enforcement, the military, financial services, retail, engineering and telecommunications. The Society serves the scientific and professional needs of operations research analysts, experts in "big data" and analytics, consultants, scientists, students, educators and managers, as well as their institutions. It publishes a variety of journals, hosts conferences, extends certification in analytics (CAP), offers continuing education courses, and provides its members with a large choice of special interest

TEA is the strategic partner of choice for public power. Through the customized application of bilateral power trading, risk management, power supply management, RTO trading, and natural gas trading services, TEA is currently collaborating with over 40 public power utilities nationwide to help them optimize the value of their generation and load portfolio in wholesale energy markets in a manner that is consistent with each utility's unique risk tolerances. Established in 1997, TEA is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, with offices in Seattle (Bellevue), Washington, and Portland, Oregon.