People
Letters to the Editor
Moscow's ratification of the Kyoto protocol could pose problems for the United States.
Diversified companies lead (and the globals lag) over the past five years.
A recent lawsuit filed by eight state attorneys general will take the industry to the place where bad policy meets with bad economics.
Hard-and-fast ring-fencing rules are not the best way to maintain order in the partially deregulated utility sector.
People for October 2004
Will a back-to-basics strategy meet investor expectations?
For The 21st Century
Interviews by
So it begins again. After several financially tumultuous years, executives at many of the nation's top utilities can once again look to the horizon and ask the growth question worthy of a Caesar: "What worlds to conquer?"
Utility executives are emboldened by bulging free cash flows, improved credit quality, lower operations and maintenance costs, favorable regulatory treatment, growing service territories, and increasing demand for power.
Buying Time
Slowly and cautiously, utilities are moving back into growth mode.
The air is buzzing with talk of mergers and acquisitions (M&A). It can be heard in the boardroom and on the trading floor. Bankers hear it, and they see their deal backlog beginning to grow. Fund managers hear it, as they hunt for the best buys in the market before strategic investors snatch them up. Financial advisers and lawyers hear it, too; their phones are ringing more than they have in years.