April 2007
Main
Patsy Wurster
I'm pleased to introduce the fourth annual Platts Global Power Markets Conference Insight. The wholesale power market is growing again. Growth brings its own new challenges and growing pains. How will all this growth be funded? How will competition be affected with possible new legislation? What new renewable technologies are on the horizon? As you will see, these and other topics will be covered extensively in this issue. Read More
Peter Maloney
The title of this year's Global Powers Markets conference is "Meeting the Challenges of Growth." Those challenges can be summed up by three Cs: Climate, consolidation and competition. Read More
Dr. John Anderson is the president & CEO of the Electricity Consumers Resource Council (ELCON). He joined ELCON in 1980. He was named the executive director in 1984. He has presented papers and spoken extensively on a wide range of electricity issues of importance to large industrial firms. Dr. Anderson holds both MS and PhD degrees from the University of Florida with concentration in public utility and industrial organization Read More
By Peter Maloney, Chief Editor, Platts Global Power Report
POWER PLANT CAPACITY ADDITIONS IN THE United States continued a four-year down trend, falling 37% to 13,321 MW, compared with 21,194 MW added in 2005, according to data from Platts Energy Advantage. However, if all the plants expected online come online, this year could be the beginning of a multi-year uptrend for the addition of generating capacity in the US. Read More
By Ross McCracken, Editor, Platts Energy Economist
The hard-won reforms of Europe's power markets are having trouble keeping pace with current needs. Read More
INCREASING AND EVER-CHANGING GOVERNMENT regulation, the ongoing challenge of infrastructure investments and the roller coaster ride of natural gas prices are the top issues on the minds of the movers and shakers in the North American electricity and natural gas utility industries, according to a recent survey by Platts and Capgemini. Read More
By Byron Wright, VP Corporate Development, El Paso Corp.
ELECTRIC POWER GENERATION IS THE largest consumer of energy in the United States and also the single largest source of harmful air quality emissions. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, in 2004, power generation was responsible for 67% of the oxides of sulphur (SOx), 22% of the oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and 34% of the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the United States. Read More
By Charles Tooman, Managing Consultant, Global Energy Practice, PA Consulting Group
ENERGY COMPANIES AROUND THE GLOBE are facing an array of opportunities – and risks – that challenge even the most seasoned strategic decision-makers in the industry. From multinational oil companies recognizing unprecedented profits (while operating amidst fears of nationalism and growing political risk), to energy utilities realizing growth through mergers and acquisitions (while facing increasingly expansive and undetermined environmental standards), to power companies navigating through evolving market structures (e.g., Independent System Operators (ISOs) /Regional Transmission Organizations (RTOs), the rise of locational marginal pricing (LMP)), organizations across the value chain and in all commodities are being forced to devise innovative business and asset management strategies in the face of a host of unprecedented challenges in a competitive and challenging marketplace. Read More
By John Anderson, President & CEO, ELCON
LARGE INDUSTRIAL USERS OF ELECTRICITY have believed for many years that traditional cost-of-service regulation produces limited benefits for consumers. Under this regulatory system, utilities have an incentive to increase their capital expenditures (and then justify those expenditures to the state utility commission), but they have little incentive to seek more efficient, lower priced generation options or to pursue innovative product offerings. There is little (or no) customer focus, because, in truth, utilities see the state commission, not the actual power consumers, as the customer. Read More
By David LaPlante, Vice President, Wholesale Markets Strategy, ISO New England
TEN YEARS AGO, NEW ENGLAND launched an effort to restructure its regulated, vertically integrated electricity system and introduce more efficient, competitive markets. The cost-of-service system had served us for decades, but the time had come to breathe new life into the industry. Read More
By Clyde E. "Skip" Rankin, III, Baker & McKenzie, LLP
THE RENEWABLE ENERGY INDUSTRY HAS matured significantly over the past several years. It is clear that renewable energy is now a significant element in the overall strategy for addressing the world's energy needs. The year 2007 and beyond will pose new challenges for the renewables industry and will test some of the foundations on which the industry has been built. Read More
By M. Douglas Dunn and Robert B. Williams, Milbank
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS INVOLVING ELECTRICITY transmission demonstrate that this long overlooked sector is becoming the focus of new infrastructure investment, targeting traditional utilities, independent transmission companies and joint ventures, and leading to an increase in mergers and acquisitions. This follows enactment of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 ("EPAct 2005"), which includes provisions designed to promote transmission investment and improve reliability of the nation's electric transmission grid. In response to EPAct 2005 – and such fundamental concerns as congestion, declining reserve margins and aging infrastructure – electric transmission is poised for a renaissance. Read More
By Richard McMahon, Executive Director, Alliance of Energy Suppliers, Edison Electric Institute
THE U.S. ELECTRIC POWER INDUSTRY posted strong financial gains again in 2006. The positive numbers were cheered by the industry's shareholders. The consistent gain in earnings was also welcome news for the industry's investors. To sustain these results, which is vital for attracting the capital the industry will need as it enters a long-term investment cycle, electric utilities are working together to develop solutions to a range of political and regulatory challenges at both the federal and state level. Read More
Printer-friendly format