Electric Light & Power articles from September 2001

Electric Light & Power archives from September 2001

Dear Mr. President: Nuclear generators.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 promised nuclear generators a federal repository for spent nuclear fuel by Jan. 31, 1998. In 2001, nuclear generators are still sitting atop mounting piles of waste product (to the tune of nearly 20 metric...

EPSA warns against return to cost-plus regulation.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... The good old days, it turns out, may not have been so good after all. Results of a newly released study commissioned by the Electric Power Supply Association (EPSA), suggest that a return to cost-plus rate regulation in the electric...

Forget FERC, look to USDA for 2nd solutions.(Critical Essay)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... The familiar verse from a patriotic song, "this land is my land, this land is your land" is definitely not referring to the majority of landowners' attitudes when it comes to siting transmission lines on their property. Building new...

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR.
September 1, 2001... Pass the buck Two brief comments on Robert W. Smock's commentary in the July EL&P. * In many states, electric industry reorganization (often mistakenly called de-regulation) forced the regulated utilities to divest or functionally...

Merchant transmission returns unclear in U.S. market.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... Returns based on a competitive market may not outweigh the obstacles to implementing merchant transmission. Currently, there is no such project in full operation in the U.S., although two projects have been announced and approved by the Federal...

IRS eyes electric interties.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will announce this fall whether utilities must report interconnection payments from generators to connect their power plants to the grid as income. IRS policy since 1988 has been not to tax such payments. The...

Taking it up a notch: NeuCo links enterprise decisions from generation through trading to boost profitability.
September 1, 2001... This month's EL&P's financial rankings (see page 15) offer a glimpse of U.S. electric utilities' bottom lines. With market operations ranging from fairly smooth to malfunctioning to failures. IOUs know their capital is precious. It's precious...

Texas market, high prices: deja vu?(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... The Texas wholesale electricity market has flaws permitting prices to skyrocket similar to what occurred in California, a state consultant warned. Texas wholesale prices for certain electricity services have jumped to nearly $1,000 per MWh...

Highs, lows define financial climate of 2000 Extended forecast: rising pressure.(Industry Overview)
September 1, 2001... Same market, different players--very different results. The rankings for the year 2000 reveal financial evidence of the effects of deregulation, restructuring, transition and, in some cases, the disaster that resulted. The good news is...

Dynamic desktops power workforce.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... Utility companies manage loads of information--from portals to PDAs (personal digital assistants), energy companies are embracing information technology (IT) and empowering the workforce. Looking to serve customers and enhance the bottom line...

FreeMarkets Inc.(Max Scoular, director and general manager of the Energy and Process Industries Group at FreeMarkets Inc. explains the company's purpose)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... "There is a salient difference between a buyer's simple spend and complex spend," according to Max Scoular, director and general manager of the Energy and Process Industries Group at FreeMarkets Inc. "The experience, tools and resources to work...

SchlumbergerSema signs again.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... SchlumbergerSema executed another 15-year agreement to provide information technology services to Wisconsin Electric-Wisconsin Gas after recently contracting with JEA of Jacksonville, Fla. SchlumbergerSema will provide real-time energy...

NRG Energy selects OSI.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... NRG Energy Inc. selected Open Systems International Inc. (OSI) for implementation of a Generation Management System. OSI's monarch platform includes SCADA via IP based DNP remote terminal units, automatic generation control and economic...

Retail end-user slamming: Where the money isn't.(illegal long-distance slamming technique might also be used in the near future by electrical utilities)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... When promoting their cause, proponents of retail electric power competition often cite the benefits derived from competition in the telecommunications industry. Innovative value-added services and price competition among suppliers represent the...

LG&E upgrades energy monitoring services.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... LG&E Enertech, a non-regulated subsidiary of Louisville, Ky.-based LG&E Energy Corp., will integrate Datapult's energy information services portfolio into its offerings for customers in Kentucky and neighboring markets. Enertech will use...

Duquesne Light offers demand response program.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... Phase I of Duquesne Light Co.'s demand-side response, initiative (DSR) is available to all medium and large business customers who are willing to reduce load by a minimum of 500 kW. A Web-based tool--the Duquesne Light Energy Exchange--provides...

Near-term payback on residential e-commerce unlikely, Primen reports.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... According to a study by Primen, a Madison, Wis.-based energy market intelligence company, energy utilities that invest in consumer e-commerce to achieve near-term operational efficiencies likely will be disappointed, especially if their...

Steel fights for goal; wood on defense.(for use in power and wiring poles)
September 1, 2001... "There is some very rough terrain in Licking County [Ohio] and replacing poles is difficult," stated George Manning, chief operating officer of Energy Cooperative. "In 1992 we decided to try steel distribution poles as an alternative to...

Wartsila grows by leaps and bounds.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... Wartsila, a provider of solutions for decentralized power generation, has experienced record growth over the last six months, according, to company sources. They attribute the growth to strong sales of its new PeakingPlus solution in the North...

UWIG studies answers in the wind.(Utility Wind Interest Group)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... The Utility Wind Interest Group (UWIG), a non-profit corporation looking to integrate wind power and utility applications, is initiating and partially funding a project to study the impact of wind generation on electric system operations....

DTE aces test.(ST5 Turbine testing)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... DTE Energy Technologies, a subsidiary of DTE Energy, has successfully tested the Pratt & Whitney Power Systems' ST5 turbine, which will be marketed worldwide as part of the energynow ENT 400. According to DTE, the ST5 is the largest gas turbine...

ALSTOM consolidates turbines.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... ALSTOM's industrial steam turbine business has consolidated its range of steam turbines into a family of six turbine types. The program comprises four single-casing turbines and two dual-casing turbines to cover needs of less than 100 MW. It is...

RJM Corp. offers up SCR tidbit.(selective catalytic reduction technology contracts)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... RJM Corporation, a provider of emission control technologies, has announced multiple contracts for the installation of its RJM ARIS selective catalytic reduction (SCR) technology on more than 100 diesel and gas engines in the U.S. The total...

American Superconductor revs up horsepower.(5,000-horsepower, high temperature superconductor electric motor is introduced)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... American Superconductor Corp. (ASC) has built and demonstrated what they label "the world's first 5,000-horsepower, high temperature superconductor (HTS) electric motor." According to the company, their prototype is about the size of a...

Central markets, Texas style.(Texas Electric Choice Act electricy market deregulation)
September 1, 2001... The Texas Electric Choice Act, signed in 1999 by then Gov. George W. Bush, cleared the way for the deregulation of the state's electricity market. A pilot market is being inaugurated following bumpy market trials in May, June and July. At press...

Tradespark pumps up volume.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
September 1, 2001... TradeSpark traded more than $41.9 billion (notional value) in energy products during second quarter 2001, representing a 131 percent increase in trading volume over first quarter 2001. TradeSpark experienced a 189 percent increase in natural...

Dynegy plans LNG build.(liquefied natural gas)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... Dynegy joined the competition to build a liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving and regasification terminal on the U.S. Gulf Coast. The Houston company will construct a facility at Hackberry, La., on the company's existing liquefied petroleum...

NYMEX trades coal.(New York Mercantile Exchange Inc. coal futures trading begins)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... Trading in the long-stalled New York Mercantile Exchange Inc. coal futures began July 12 with 98 contracts changing hands by the close of the market. A NYMEX spokeswoman said the exchange was "reasonably pleased" with the first day's results....

NewPower pools for PSC.(Georgia Public Service Commission)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2001... The NewPower Co. was designated sole interim pooler for the Atlanta Gas Light (AGL) market by the Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) for a one-year term commenced on July 1. Under the terms of the agreement, should a natural gas marketer...