| Fortnightly

PG&E's Bankruptcy: A Power Trader's Trial by Fire

Lyn Maddox, the head of PGE’s energy trading subsidiary, has had to maintain a trading business as his company’s utility slipped into bankruptcy in 2001. Maddox says he has learned some very valuable lessons from the event.

Byline:

Richard Stavros

Read Entire Article

A Soul's Like Electricity (Ray Charles)

Our February 3 newsletter quoted David Bowie, Boz Skaggs, Ray Charles, Laurie Anderson, Dolly Parton, Damian Marley and Jimi Hendrix about electricity. Readers sent lyrics from many more songs.

Read Entire Article

How much do combined cycle natural gas plants really need to be paid?

One has to decide if a CCGT is a pure energy resource paid off through maximum sales of its electricity, or a flexible resource that holds back on production to support the grid.

There appears to be confusion on the amount of generation produced by CCGTs and types of services they can offer.

Byline:

Eric Gimon and Robbie Orvis

Read Entire Article

March Birthdays: Kirchhoff to Kaiulani

Gustav Kirchhoff, Albert Einstein, Reddy Kilowatt, George Ohm, Robert Millikan, and the light bulb patent.

Gustav Kirchhoff, who you can blame for the miserable complexity of electrical transmission and distribution systems, was born on March 12, 1824. Albert Einstein was born on March 14, 1879. And others ...

Byline:

Steve Mitnick

Read Entire Article

Fate of Conservation Mandates

Many states allow private opt-outs, but Florida bucks the trend.

Should regulators allow customers opt-out, on the theory they know best? Or should all customers be made to participate?

Byline:

Phil Cross

Read Entire Article

The Long and Short of Grid Congestion

FTRs make hedging possible, but can PJM ensure full funding without playing favorites?

Financial traders believe PJM’s proposal discriminates since they are more likely to hold counter-flow FTRs.

Byline:

Bruce W. Radford

Read Entire Article

Musk and Me

I signed up for a free quote on line.

With all the talk of the “existential threat” to traditional utilities from solar and other disruptive technologies (and the blowback against net metering in various states), I thought I’d check out SolarCity first hand.

Byline:

Steve Huntoon

Read Entire Article

Technological Innovation and Public Policy-Making

The new grid will be driven by opportunities for electric utilities and customers to monetize their economic opportunities.

Policy-maker’s perspective: It's important to permit utilities to become more efficient and develop alternative revenue streams.

Byline:

Tom Sloan

Read Entire Article

Schneiderman Targets Peabody Energy

Shareholder Protection or War on Coal?

Why did Schneiderman sue Peabody? Because Peabody is America’s biggest coal company. He also likely wanted to establish a precedent before launching a Martin Act investigation of even bigger game: ExxonMobil.

Byline:

Marlo Lewis, Jr.

Read Entire Article

New Regulatory Paradigm Needed Now

The time is now for establishing concrete rules, roles and responsibilities for utilities and other participants.

Driven by policy directives over which utilities have little control, DERs will remain both a threat and opportunity until regulators agree on a new paradigm to support distributed energy resources.

Byline:

Paul A. DeCotis

Read Entire Article

Search form