Re: OUTAGE TRACED TO DIM BULB

[maury <maury@webtexas.com>]

John Jacobus wrote:



Since I do not claim to be an expert in this area, I

appreciate your comments.



As a consumer of electrical energy, I remain

concerned about our government not watching out for my

best interests.



====================

Hi John and all the rest of you who have contributed to these exchanges;



First, it surely is obvious that I am not an expert in this area either.

When I spoke about electricity transmission remaining almost totally

regulated, I was thinking in terms of price. Ruth and others have cited

the absence of standards and other factors usually associated with

regulation.



It has turned out that I was unclear about the exact distinctions

between production, distribution, and transmission. Bob Flood helped me

greatly to understand these terms better.  Bob, however, said that he is

not familiar with pricing the use of transmission lines. (Bob, how come

your address is John?)



So, you have all been encouraging, carried on a worthwhile debate that

is intimately related to nuclear power, and helped me find some really

important areas of my own ignorance. I have begun the process of

learning answers about the pricing/regulation issue and I will return to

this topic as soon as I can add seriously to it.



Ruth, you have pointed to a truly enigmatic issue which also poses quite

a contrast between your area in NM and in TX. Deregulation in the

absence of competition is meaningless and that appears to be your

situation. But the NM PUC supposedly regulates PNM just as they have for

years -- before anyone ever suggested deregulation. Isn't that the govt

regulation you wanted to protect the consumer while at the same time

mandating a rate structure which guarantees a fair rate of return to the

utility? How the voters of NM make the PUC more responsive to consumers

is another (age-old) question.



In California, wholesale prices were deregulated while fixed retail

prices were retained -- disaster for all concerned. In Texas, retail and

wholesale prices have been deregulated (as stated above I'm in the

process of finding out about transmission line pricing which is reported

to be only about 10% of the cost of electricity anyway.)  I will learn

more soon, but believe nearly all areas of Texas can now choose from at

least two companies to buy power.



If any readers can supply information or references that will help me

learn more about this subject, I will be grateful. And in the meantime,

I shall enjoy eating my crow which is thoroughly tenderized in my trusty

pressure cooker.  (Down, John, I'll be back)  <grin>



Cheers and thanks to all,

Maury           maury#webtexas.com

__________

The scientific theory I like best is that the rings of Saturn are

composed

entirely of lost airline luggage.                                Mark

Russell







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