Interdependent electricity markets design: Market power and gaming

•Scrutinize the interdependent electricity markets (IEMs) design guide in terms of gaming and evaluating the potential of exercising market power.•Introduce the new circumstances of gaming and the potential of exercising the market power within IEMs.•Investigate vulnerability of the markets in terms of market power, by increasing the integration of the markets and asymmetric policies on renewable energy sources development.•Introduce a new model for the coordinator’s objective function in which the network congestion is managed efficiently since the overall cost in all markets is minimized.