Bragawatts: Nothing to Brag About
So-called 'round-trip trades' and what FERC should do about it.
Barbarians at the Gates
FERC... SEC... CFTC...Congress ... Ratings Agencies... Stockholders... Bondholders... Private Equity Investors?
No one has yet quantified or qualified the devastation to industry reputation, electric competition, or energy companies' future earnings power caused by the current round of energy trading scandals that is shaking the industry to its core.
Let's Be More Positive About Natural Gas!
There will be ample U.S. natural gas supplies to support a 30 Tcf market by 2010.
Managing the Telecom Value Curve
There are opportunities for utilities despite the telecom market correction of 2001 and 2002.
Gas Turbinemania: The Merchant Power Plant Shake Out
Why it happened? Who lost in the bust? Who will survive to build another turbine?
The Top 10
The Ten Most Intriguing Business Decisions in the Post-Enron World.
Electricity Restructuring is No License for Central Planning
RTOs will perpetuate regional monopolies and political rate regulation.
Economists sometimes get confused - especially when the real world doesn't fit into their neat boxes.
Network industries like telephone and electricity are today's case in point. Economists have viewed these parts of the economy as requiring special attention from regulatory authorities. They're viewed as "natural" monopolies displaying "economies of scope" and characterized by risky "lock-in" or "path dependency" features. That supposedly makes them prone to abuse by their free-market owners, and therefore in need of impartial regulatory oversight.
People (June 1, 2002)
Point-Counterpoint
Letters to the Editor