Fortnightly Magazine - March 2006

Manual Meter Reading: Twenty-First Century Tools

Segways and rugged laptops afford new levels of convenience—and protection—for mobile workers.

Advanced metering may be the future of meter reading, but as utilities grapple with implementation costs and technical issues, it’s in their best interest to maximize meter reading done the old-fashioned way: on two feet.

The Merger Paradox

More consolidation could trim costs, but some CEOs fear a backlash from regulators.

With the possible exception of keeping the lights on, the merger game dwarfs just about every other question facing today’s electric utilities. The last big wave of consolidation hit in the late 1990s. Now the forecast calls for a repeat performance, but don’t bet the farm. There’s a hitch, you see. It’s today’s high commodity costs.

People

(March 2006) FirstEnergy Corp. named Bennett L. Gaines vice president and CIO. PPL Corp. named Matt Simmons vice president and controller. NorthWestern Corp., d/b/a NorthWestern Energy, named D. Louis Peoples to its board of directors. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards re-elected Dr. Graham B. Wallis as chairman, Dr. William J. Shack as vice-chairman, and John D. Sieber as member-at-large. And others...

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