Become a PUF Member Organization

U.S. Department of Energy

Cross-Sound Blues

Legal challenges continue for the undersea transmission line.

When the Connecticut Siting Council granted a certificate of environmental compatibility and public need approving the Cross-Sound cable in January 2002, it determined that the project would provide a public benefit and would not have an environmental impact constituting “sufficient reason to deny the application.” At the time of this writing, it is in operation pursuant to federal order, while opponents continue to try to shut down the cable. What happened in 2003 to delay the project, and how might the ongoing struggle affect similar projects proposed or under way?
Byline: 

Linda Randell and Bruce McDermott

Read Entire Article

Rethinking Restructuring

Two Cato analysts suggest a return to the past-vertical integration, but now with no state regulators.

The defeat of the energy bill in the Senate last year has thrown electricity restructuring back on its heels. There clearly is no consensus among politicians or academics regarding how this industry ought to be organized or how it might best be regulated. Finding our way out of this morass requires a reconsideration of how we got to this dismal point in our regulatory journey. Doing so suggests a surprising series of conclusions about what has gone wrong and where to go from here.
Byline: 

Peter Van Doren and Jerry Taylor

Read Entire Article

New Nuclear Construction: Still on Hold

A number of factors point to expanded nuclear generation. But when?

Skeptics believe investors will continue to shy away from nuclear in the coming decades, but conditions are changing, with several factors pointing to expanded nuclear generation.
Byline: 

Neil J. Numark and Micheal O. Terry

Read Entire Article

Close to Load, Far From Consensus

Feds seek plug-and-play for distributed generation, but utilities want the power to stay local.

Pity the poor Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. With its market crusade out of favor, and transmission reform suddenly suspect after the Aug. 14 blackout, it could use a new agenda. Indeed, FERC this past July had proposed a new set of standards for the connection of small- and micro-sized power plants units to regional transmission networks, or even to radial or local distribution lines operating at low voltages.
Byline: 

Bruce W. Radford

Read Entire Article

What Do You Mean by Green?

Seemingly eco-friendly definitions can prevent adoption of renewable portfolio standards.

Seemingly eco-friendly definitions can prevent adoption of renewable portfolio standards.

Byline: 

Michael Strong

Read Entire Article

People

New Positions:

People

New Positions:

AEP named John D. Harper vice president of general services. Harper has been with AEP since 2000, most recently as vice president of corporate technology development.

Paul M. Barbas joined the senior management at Chesapeake Service Co., taking on the role of president. He also becomes vice president of Chesapeake Utilities Corp. Barbas previously was executive vice president of Allegheny Power.

Byline: 
We welcome submissions to People, especially those accompanied by a high-resolution color photograph. E-mail to: photos@pur.com
Read Entire Article

Combined Heat & Power, Revisited

Outdated "wisdom" wastes the nation's electricity infrastructure. Distributed CH&P is the answer.

One of the system’s greatest flaws has been its inefficient — even wasteful — use of fuel resources in the face of opportunities to implement combined heat and power.
Byline: 

Gary Nakarado and Holly Thomas

Read Entire Article

Gas Crisis Forum: Is It Real, or Is It Hype?

Chicken Little has cornered the market on gas price doom and gloom, but the data is inconsistent on whether high gas prices are here to stay.

“Crisis” makes for good business to an interesting assortment of players in the energy industry, but such talk could lead to unnecessary and untimely legislative and regulatory intercession. Investment, not government intervention, could be the answer.
Byline: 

Robert S. Linden

Read Entire Article

Gas Crisis Forum: Prices Pointing Skyward!

Gas prices are likely to remain high in the near term.

The prospects aren’t good for a dip in natural gas prices. An overview of Canadian imports, Mexican exports, LNG, the Rockies, and the overall demand for gas points to higher prices for gas in the near term.
Byline: 

John H. Herbert

Read Entire Article

Predicting California Deman Response

How do customers react to hourly prices?


How do customers react to hourly prices?

As California embarks on a Statewide Pricing Pilot (SPP) for residential and small commercial (200 kW) customers, policymakers and participants in the proceedings are asking several questions:

Byline: 
Chris S. King and Sanjoy Chatterjee
Read Entire Article