Commentary

Diverse views on current and perennial power industry issues from guest commentators: power generation technologies, legislation, policy, economics

Competition policy: The best path
Competition policy: The best path

    Winston Churchill once said, "Democracy is the worst form of government—except for all the others." The same could be said for competition policy in wholesale power markets. Competition…



It’s time to rebalance America’s electricity strategy
It’s time to rebalance America’s electricity strategy

Not long ago, most utility investors considered California's electricity policies too iconoclastic to support. Driven by far-left environmentalists and overzealous regulators, those policies have made it nearly impossible to build…


Global warming "consensus" continues to melt away
Global warming "consensus" continues to melt away

We are witnessing an international awakening of scientists who are speaking out in opposition to former Vice President Al Gore, the United Nations, and the media-driven "consensus" on man-made global…


Third time the charm for unbiased open access?
Third time the charm for unbiased open access?

  The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) recently issued major rules that address for the third time "discrimination" issues remaining after FERC's 1996 landmark Order 888, which ushered in mandatory…


The electricity challenge of the 21st century
The electricity challenge of the 21st century

When tackling a problem, engineers bring both skepticism and optimism to the task. As the nation's electric power engineers look to fill America's looming capacity gap, they will need to…


Keep grid modernization a national priority
Keep grid modernization a national priority

  As the possibility of national climate change legislation increases on Capitol Hill and captures the attention of the electric power community, I am concerned that regulators, legislators, and utility…


Full-service utilities prove their value
Full-service utilities prove their value

During the past year, the debate over the structure of the nation's electricity systems has continued at a steady clip. It seems that almost every month a new study or…


A new day in power generation
A new day in power generation

The recently published Long-Term Reliability Assessment from the North American Electric Reliability Council (NERC) found that several areas of the U.S. and Canada risk falling below minimum capacity target levels…