\documentclass[final]{IEEEtran}
\usepackage{amsmath,amssymb}
\usepackage{graphicx}
\usepackage{fixltx2e} %for the floats to appear in order
\usepackage{array} %for m{.4cm} to be usable in tables
\usepackage{cite} %for the successive references to apear correctly in IEEE
\usepackage{ifthen} %for using \ifthenelse {\boolean{a name you choose}}
\usepackage{color} %for using a font color

\begin{document}

I want to reference these two: ~\cite{CARP08IEEEPWRS} \cite{CARP06conf}.

\bibliography{IEEEabrv,loss_cost_bib} %for Elsevier format
\bibliographystyle{IEEEtran} %For IEEE format  (this command should be after "\begin{document}")

\end{document}