Frontlines: Still More Blackouts?
Do-nothing regulators scare off investment, raising prospects for yet another large-scale power failure.
Let's hope the industry spends the money before Mother Nature throws her next pop quiz.
Law & Lawyers
People
People for March 2004.
Positions filled at Allegheny Energy, Constellation NewEnergy, Xcel Energy, and others.
Integrating Coal and Wind
Strange bedfellows may provide a new supply option.
Joint coal-wind development is not a good greenhouse gas reduction strategy. If carbon limits are imposed on the U.S. electric sector at some future date, nuclear power may be the only viable option for satisfying the country's growing appetite for electricity.
Perspective: MISO, Markets, and Common Sense
Wisconsinites don't fear 'Day 2.' But let's get the grid rights right.
The cost of rushing into poorly designed LMP-based energy markets may far exceed any purported cost increases attributable to any future delayed start-up date for certain portions of the MISO region.
Total Recall: Will Competition Be Back?
California anticipates changes in energy policy under its new governor.
The Schwarzenegger administration’s detailed implementation plan is expected by the spring of 2004. Schwarzenegger is committed to restoring confidence in government and improving the business climate, and at the same time taking steps to increase and diversify California’s energy supply and improve the environment.
Electric Reliability: The Merger Solution
Can economies of scale make the industry more stable?
Utility mergers create exceptional efficiencies, yielding average cost savings of approximately 5 to 10 percent of the combined company’s non-fuel operating expenses. These substantial untapped cost efficiencies could be harvested through more merger-friendly state regulatory policies that would enable utilities to retain these merger cost savings so long as a significant portion was channeled toward infrastructure investment.
Technology Corridor: Bridging the Transmission Gap
A digital grid to the home, secured via a local fiber-optic network, could position utilities to fix power and telecom together.
Before billions are spent building new transmission lines to ensure reliable electric service, North American electric utilities should evaluate whether the alternatives — controlling demand and fostering distributed generation — might be more cost-effective and broadly beneficial.
Keys to Transmission and Distribution Reliability
A coordinated approach helps control costs.
T&D asset management — crucial to preventing future blackouts — boils down to capital budgeting and project prioritization.
Frontlines: Sticker Shock
Electricity rates may be heading skyward sooner than we think.
Even in regulated states, balancing shareholder interest against ratepayer interest is still more art than science. A fact that utilities will always dread, as long as there are rate cases.
People
People for April 2004.
Positions filled at the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Duke Energy, Entergy, and others.