Commentary
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Aug 12, 2003 |
Last year, an English computer enthusiast who uses the online alias Trubador pulled his PC apart, removed the fans, attached a bundle of coins to the top of the Athlon XP1500+ chip (to act as a heatsink), and turned the machine on. -
Aug 08, 2003 |
The marketplace is quick to adapt, and astute customers are searching out best practices to increase their competitive advantage in a market that is becoming increasingly deregulated. In many jurisdictions where markets have opened, energy prices are changing so rapidly that traditional energy management practices are no longer adequate. -
Aug 06, 2003 |
Terrorist attacks in New York City and Washington, D.C. Terrorist attacks overseas. War in Iraq. Soft economies worldwide. Deregulation of the utility industry. Those are a lot of road blocks to running a successful company, whether it be a power company or any other business. -
Jul 31, 2003 |
It is common practice to use financial incentives and disincentives to send signals to markets on the desired use of constrained resources. The energy sector has a volatility of demand and generation that can cause severe economic disruption when the two become unbalanced. -
Jul 30, 2003 |
Energy companies looking to thrive in the increasingly competitive marketplace have many challenges before them, not the least of which is attracting and retaining customers, and doing so cost-effectively. -
Jul 29, 2003 |
Investor-owned Sharyland Utilities (SU) of McAllen is the first new electric utility in Texas since the founding of the state’s PUC some 30 years ago. Now in its fourth year of operation, SU brings to the state’s energy market a new kind of wires service company known as an “asset-backed virtual utility.” This article explores some of the distinctive differences that characterize this novel concept. -
Jul 23, 2003 |
Outage. That word is a sharp stick in the eye of the energy and utilities industry. But outages are a way of life for utilities, especially in geographies that are prone to bad weather. In fact, utilities spend a significant amount of their time and resources maintaining physical assets and recovering from outages when they occur. -
Jul 23, 2003 |
There are two primary purposes of efficient time-of-use pricing: 1) reflect cost by time period, and 2) discourage on-peak usage (and possibly encourage off-peak usage). -
Jul 22, 2003 |
Customer service has always been one of the primary ways a utility company is judged by consumers. Other factors like price can be attributed to inflation or the overall rising cost of energy. Yet, many utility companies do not utilize the latest and most effective ways to improve customer service. -
Jul 21, 2003 |
The Virtual Power Plant (VPP) is a new approach to solving our country's electrical energy problems by utilizing innovative products with a creative funding mechanism. The VPP provides displaced electrical capacity to the consumer and the utilities by installing energy efficient devices, which can be measured and verified.
