Mario Veiga Ferraz Pereira (born March 12, 1953) is a Brazilian scientist and engineer known as Mario Veiga in Brazil and Mario Pereira outside Brazil. He founded PSR,[1] a consulting and software development company in the energy sector. He is best known for his work in
electrical engineering and
operations research. Mario Pereira is also known for developing the Stochastic Dual Dynamic Programming algorithm, used to solve multistage
stochastic programming problems, in particular in the context of power system operation and planning.[2]
In 2021, Pereira was elected to the
National Academy of Engineering for contributions to methodology and implementation of multistage stochastic optimization in hydroelectric scheduling, energy planning, and policy.[3]
Mario started his career as a researcher at
Eletrobras Cepel, Brazil, in 1975, which he left in 1990. At Cepel, he worked on multiple topics at the intersection of power systems and operation research, including hydrothermal scheduling,[2] reliability,[11] power systems operations,[12] and inflow models.[13] During this period, he developed the Stochastic Dual Dynamic Programming algorithm, which is used to solve multistage stochastic optimization problems, particularly in hydroelectric scheduling.[2][14] His algorithm led to software that became the official operation tool in Brazil.[15] It has been used in many other countries, including Canada, Colombia, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, and the United States.[16]
In 1987, Pereira founded PSR, a consulting and software development company in the energy sector. He was CEO at PSR until December 2018, when he became Chief Innovation Officer (CINO). Pereira has continued his academic work[20][21][22][23][24] and developed multiple operations research based tools for power systems planning and operation. In 2001, he was an advisor to the presidency during the Brazilian energy crisis. He has consulted for multiple countries, including the United States, Canada, and many South America and Asia countries.[8][6][25][26]
Awards and honors
Finalist for the
Franz Edelman Award in 1985 from
INFORMS for his work: Coordinating the Energy Generation of the Brazilian National Hydrothermal Electrical Generating System.[27][28]
Elected to the
National Academy of Engineering in 2021 for contributions to methodology and implementation of multistage stochastic optimization in hydroelectric scheduling, energy planning, and policy.[3]
Pereira, Mario; Kelman, Jerson; Damázio, J.; Costa, J. (December 1, 1982). "Flood Control Restrictions for Hydroelectric Plants".
Decision Making for Hydrosystems: Forecasting and Operation(PDF). International Symposium on Real-Time Operation of Hydrosystems, Water Resources Publications. pp. 303–336.
ISBN0918334500.