Ao Yu

Ao Yu is a Postdoctoral Energy Economist at Argonne National Laboratory. His DOE-funded research focuses on validating counterfactual price-uncertainty models in hydrology-market-coupled operating strategies for hydroelectric dams and valuing the grid reliability and resilience provided by pumped storage hydropower (PSH) systems. He has worked extensively with the Western Area Power Administration (WAPA), applying causal inference and machine-learning methods to assess the economic impacts of dam regulations and policy interventions.
His WAPA-related work also includes time series modeling of wholesale electricity price uncertainty within the WAPA-CRSP footprint, valuation of capacity resources, and counterfactual rate impact analysis under alternative cost-recovery and hydrological scenarios. He is a contributor to the Post-2026 Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for Operational Guidelines and Strategies for Lake Powell and Lake Mead.