Reliability vs. Resiliency
Prevent problems, or wait and respond when something happens?
FERC holds conference on electric reliability, asks about standards for resiliency – not just to prevent problems, but how to respond once they occur.
Frontlines
Negawhat?
EPSA v. FERC: How the court went wrong on demand response.
The court’s ruling in EPSA v. FERC assigns a retail/wholesale dichotomy to demand response, but is that distinction even meaningful?
Unwinding the Death Spiral
Rooftop solar, net metering, and the perils of utilityspeak.
The Sierra Club accuses utilities of trying to snuff out rooftop solar. Attorney Donald Sipe recommends RTO/ISO markets for natural gas.
Community Renaissance
When one age ends, another begins.
Community microgrids raise questions about the role of the utility franchise, versus the free market.
Don't Get Netflixed
The tide is turning. Are we planning for it – or hoping to stop it?
The central station system is the most cost-effective way to provide utility service, but that's beside the point. Customers don't care about 'utility service.'
Catching Fire
Climate policy heats up after the Great Recession.
GHG rules are coming soon. What happens next will depend on how states react.
Beyond the Meter
Protecting your base – while keeping options open.
The coming years will bring policy wrangling over distributed resources – what’s economic and what’s not.
Innovation Mandate
Meeting the just-and-reasonable standard in a time of change.
Who can say for sure if markets are working? The landscape keeps shifting.
Productivity Plateau
A mature industry faces a worrying round of hype.
Are we languishing, or working off a 20th-century legacy? Gartner’s hype cycle suggests the latter, as new technologies start producing value.
Disruption on Wall Street
Financial executives contemplate the rise of distributed resources.
In a January 2013 report, EEI said fast-growing distributed energy could undermine the utility business model. Wall Street is paying attention.