Consumers Want What?
Rather than accept the rhetoric, let’s find out.
What’s missing is asking consumers to consider realistic tradeoffs between two characteristics of electricity rather than the desirability of a single characteristic in isolation.
Pricing
An Industry Transformed
Looking back on my 45 years in the energy sector.
By diving into today’s more diverse energy sector and embracing change, utilities stand to benefit over the long term. This is precisely why I am so excited about the future, even if I do occasionally look back wistfully on the past.
Demand Response: Getting the Prices Right
The rule works in the direction of more regulation to hamper innovation and counteracts incentives the rule creates.
FERC made a mistake in Order 745 and should change the pricing rule.
The Future of Retail Electricity Competition in Pennsylvania
Almost all large customers shop, but a majority of small customers remain on utility default service, which is regulated and relatively stable.
Given the polar vortex and data suggesting shopping customers pay more than those on regulated default service, the primary focus should be on consumer protection.
Parsing Poles and Towers
Customer cost allocations using the Minimum Distribution System method.
Accounting and Rate Design: How to use the Minimum Distribution Method to allocate local grid costs to end-use customers.
Getting Past Net Metering
A forward-looking solution to rate reform, for when solar costs hit bottom.
Why keep rate design shackled to the ways of the past, especially at the dawn of a solar revolution?
Why Care About Transactive Energy?
Only if you’re a governor, legislator, regulator ... or customer.
When ratepayers become generators, the utility industry is turned upside-down. A warning to legislators, regulators – and even governors – on what to expect.
Why is Electricity Use No Longer Growing?
Demand growth has been declining steadily now for some 50 years. But why: Price? Self Generation? The Great Recession?
Smart by Default
Time-varying rates from the get-go – not just by opt-in.
Default enrollment for time-varying rates, with an opt-out, will reduce peak demand and far more than a default flat rate with a TVR opt-in.
Customer First
Is the current regulatory compact in anyone’s best interests?
Serving customers’ needs should be a top priority for power companies, irrespective of the regulatory construct and business model. Transformation doesn’t change this basic fact, but how do we break the model without breaking the system?