|
|
Enron Mail |
Today's IEP news...
Thanks, Jean Calif Controller To Release Power Supply Contract Details - Dow Jones [PRESS CONFERENCE today at 11AM PST @ Controllers office, 300 Capitol Mall] CBS News Transcripts, CBS MORNING NEWS (6:30 AM ET), May 18, 2001, Friday, ????386 words, CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR THREATENS TO TAKE MATTERS INTO HIS OWN HANDS ????IF THE GOVERNMENT OFFERS NO RELIEF FOR THE STATE'S ENERGY CRISIS, JULIE CHEN ????, BILL WHITAKER [Smutny interviewed on behalf of IEP] National Public Radio (NPR), MORNING EDITION (10:00 AM ET), May 18, 2001, ????Friday, 619 words, CALIFORNIA'S POWER PLAN, ALEX CHADWICK, ELAINE KORRY ? ??????[Smutny interviewed on behalf of IEP] CBS News Transcripts, CBS EVENING NEWS (6:30 PM ET), May 17, 2001, Thursday ????, 430 words, CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR THREATENS TO TAKE MATTERS INTO HIS OWN ????HANDS IF THE GOVERNMENT OFFERS NO RELIEF FOR THE STATE'S ENERGY CRISIS, DAN ????RATHER, BILL WHITAKER ?[Smutny interviewed on behalf of IEP] Los Angeles Times, May 19, 2001 Saturday, Home Edition, Page 1, 704 words, ????PUC Allegations Detailed; Hearing: The commission president tells a Senate ????panel that maintenance records show no valid reason for generators to cut ????power production., ROBERT J. LOPEZ, RICH CONNELL, TIMES STAFF WRITERS ???[Jean quoted on behalf of IEP] Los Angeles Times, May 21, 2001 Monday, Home Edition, Page 7, 782 words, ????The State; ; Davis Says Bad Guys Went Thataway, to Texas, GEORGE SKELTON Chicago Tribune, May 21, 2001 Monday, NORTH SPORTS FINAL EDITION, Business; ????Pg. 3; ZONE: CN; INSIDE TECHNOLOGY., 758 words, Power demands set stage for ????boom in backup systems, BY JON VAN. The Associated Press State & Local Wire, May 21, 2001, Monday, BC cycle, ????8:34 AM Eastern Time, State and Regional, 273 words, New poll suggests ????Californians haven't been this gloomy for years, SAN FRANCISCO The Associated Press State & Local Wire, May 21, 2001, Monday, BC cycle, ????6:43 AM Eastern Time, State and Regional, 901 words, 'Baseline' becoming key ????word for electric customers, By KAREN GAUDETTE, Associated Press Writer, SAN ????FRANCISCO The Associated Press State & Local Wire, May 21, 2001, Monday, BC cycle, ????4:03 AM Eastern Time, State and Regional, 720 words, Grid officials, others ????studying planned blackouts, By JENNIFER COLEMAN, Associated Press Writer, ????SACRAMENTO Los Angeles Times, May 20, 2001 Sunday, Home Edition, Page 21, 709 words, ????THE NATION; ; As Energy Prices Rise, So Does the Rancor; Politics: Gov. ????Davis says power plan comes at the expense of consumers. Bush blames ????Democrats for environmental curbs., EDMUND SANDERS, TIMES STAFF WRITER, ????WASHINGTON Los Angeles Times, May 20, 2001 Sunday, Home Edition, Page 16, 930 words, ????THE NATION; ; Spencer Abraham Is Running on Energy, Not Charisma; ?Profile: ????Charged with selling Bush's initiative, 'workhorse' new to the field is ????facing a hard row., FAYE FIORE, TIMES STAFF WRITER, WASHINGTON Los Angeles Times, May 20, 2001 Sunday, Home Edition, Page 3, 407 words, ????Los Angeles; ; Davis Launches Conservation Campaign; Electricity: Governor ????hands out fluorescent lightbulbs in his effort to get Californians to save ????power this summer., DALONDO MOULTRIE, TIMES STAFF WRITER Sacramento Bee, May 20, 2001, Sunday, Pg. A3;, 704 words, One year later, ????we know it wasn't just a simple game of golf, Dan Walters The San Francisco Chronicle, MAY 20, 2001, SUNDAY,, FINAL EDITION, NEWS;, ????Pg. A5, 1030 words, ENERGY CRUNCH; ???Investigations; ???Power firms fueled ????by greed, Lockyer says; ???Out-of-state generators face multiple probes, ????Greg Lucas, Sacramento The San Francisco Chronicle, MAY 20, 2001, SUNDAY,, FINAL EDITION, NEWS;, ????Pg. A1, 1932 words, Power juggling ramped up price; ???Insiders say ????manipulation also strained equipment, Christian Berthelsen, Scott Winokur The San Francisco Chronicle, MAY 20, 2001, SUNDAY,, FINAL EDITION, ????EDITORIAL;, Pg. C6;, 984 words, EDITORIAL; ???On energy; ???Conservation's ????value: It's not all sacrifice Calif Controller To Release Power Supply Contract Details ???? Updated: Monday, May 21, 2001 09:40 AM?ET ????? ? LOS ANGELES (Dow Jones)--California state Controller Kathleen Connell will release details of the state's long-term power supply contracts, including the cost per megawatt-hour, during a news conference Monday morning, according to her office. Connell will also discuss property taxation of utilities and possible anticipation of revenues in 2002 at the 2 p.m. EST news conference in Sacramento. Connell, a Democrat, has said the $13.4 billion in revenue bonds the state plans to sell in August to pay for electricity will last through early 2002, if power prices are about $195 a megawatt-hour in the summer. However, she said she fears prices will be much higher and the bonds will be exhausted sooner. Connell attempted to release details in February and March on the price the state paid to secure long-term power supply contracts, but was told by Gov. Gray Davis' administration that if she released the information it could jeopardize the deals because of its competitiveness. Connell has said the state should immediately stop buying power because of the impact it is having on the state's budget and the likelihood that other state-funded programs will be cut. -By Jason Leopold; Dow Jones Newswires; 323-658-3874; jason.leopold@dowjones.com SHOW: CBS MORNING NEWS (6:30 AM ET) ?May 18, 2001, Friday TYPE: Newscast LENGTH: 386 words HEADLINE: CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR THREATENS TO TAKE MATTERS INTO HIS OWN HANDS IF THE GOVERNMENT OFFERS NO RELIEF FOR THE STATE'S ENERGY CRISIS ANCHORS: JULIE CHEN REPORTERS: BILL WHITAKER BODY: ??JULIE CHEN, anchor: ??In energy-starved California, ground zero of the power crisis, the Bush plan faces sharp criticism. ?Bill Whitaker has that. ??BILL WHITAKER reporting: ??Six times this year lights have gone out in parts of California when heat triggered a surge in demand. ?Governor Gray Davis deflected the political heat, blasting the Bush energy plan as inadequate. ??Governor GRAY DAVIS (Democrat, California): I fault the president for not providing California with any immediate relief. ??WHITAKER: In a major power play of his own, Davis has threatened to seize the facilities of Reliant Energy, a Texas-based supplier and major Bush contributor, if Reliant doesn't cut prices. ??Gov. DAVIS: But I told the generators face to face, I said, 'Your fate is in your hands. ?If you don't help me get through this summer with a minimum of disruptions, then you leave me no choice but to sign a windfall profits tax and to seize plants.' ??WHITAKER: All five of Reliant's Southern California plants are natural gas powered, supplying electricity to three million houses. ?Davis has called Reliant the greediest of all the out-of-state suppliers. ?Reliant wouldn't comment on camera, but the industry says takeover talk is more political than economic. ??Mr. JAN SMUTNY-JONES (Independent Energy Producers Association): Seizing private property didn't work in Cuba and it's not going to work in California, either. ??WHITAKER: A state takeover of Reliant could backfire, scaring off other out-of-state generators. ?But analysts say California, which already uses less energy per capita than any other state, has few options. ??Mr. MARK BERNSTEIN (Energy Analyst, Rand Corp.): The only other thing that can happen is for the federal government to take action to moderate prices. And if the gov--federal government doesn't take those actions, the governor may not have any choice. ??WHITAKER: Some California legislators suggest creating a buyers' cartel with Washington and Oregon to jointly muscle down prices and even risk blackouts if suppliers won't comply. ?So far Oregon and Washington aren't convinced, but California must do something. ?Last year, electricity cost 400 percent more than the year before. ?And this year, prices are rising still. ?Bill Whitaker, CBS News, Los Angeles. LOAD-DATE: May 19, 2001 ???????????????????????????????2 of 3 DOCUMENTS Copyright 2001 National Public Radio (R). ?All rights reserved. No quotes from ?the materials contained herein may be used in any media without attribution to ??National Public Radio. ?This transcript may not be reproduced in whole or in part without prior written permission. ?For further information, please contact ????????????????NPR's Permissions Coordinator at (202) 513-2000. ?????????????????????????National Public Radio (NPR) ?????????????????????SHOW: MORNING EDITION (10:00 AM ET) ?????????????????????????????May 18, 2001, Friday LENGTH: 619 words HEADLINE: CALIFORNIA'S POWER PLAN ANCHORS: ALEX CHADWICK REPORTERS: ELAINE KORRY BODY: ??ALEX CHADWICK, host: ??California's rushing to get new power plants up and running. ?In January, Governor Gray Davis used emergency powers to speed the permit process. There has been progress, but NPR's Elaine Korry reports probably not enough to avoid more blackouts this summer. ??ELAINE KORRY reporting: ??Since January, California energy regulators have been slashing red tape to speed new power plants online. ?Their tracking 180 separate projects. Bob Thurkelsen, who overseas permitting at the California Energy Commission, says the governor's emergency directive has already paid off. ??Mr. BOB THURKELSEN (California Energy Commission): And that has allowed us to, so far, permit 450 megawatts of new generation in a 21-day period. ??KORRY: In a few cases, even quicker than that. ?Jim Michael is the president of Alliance Power, based in Denver, which sprinted through its permit process in under three weeks. ??Mr. JIM MICHAEL (Alliance Power): Well, we're pouring concrete. ?We're on schedule, so we're gonna have power plants operating this summer. ??KORRY: Alliance is building two small generators in Southern California. Michael says permitting projects that used to take months were, instead, completed in a day or two, allowing the company to meet critical deadlines. ??Mr. MICHAEL: It was essential. ?Without that streamlining, these projects would have gone away. ?The turbines would have been sold to other projects outside of California and so we would have essentially failed. ??KORRY: Yet there's still a major hitch. ?Despite the speedup in permitting, California will still fall far short of the governor's initial goal. ?He wanted 5,000 new megawatts of electricity, enough to power five million homes, to come online by July 1st. ?In a worst-case scenario, that's how much additional supply the state would need to keep the lights on this summer. ?Yet only half that amount, 2,500 megawatts, will be up and running by July. ?Jan Smutny-Jones heads the industry lobbying group the Independent Energy Producers Association. ?He's not surprised by the shortfall. ??Mr. JAN SMUTNY-JONES (Independent Energy Producers Association): We said at the time that was a very ambitious goal. ?And we'll see how it plays out. ??KORRY: Smutny-Jones says blackouts are a near certainty this summer. Their severity will depend on a number of unknowns. ?How hot will it get this summer? How much more can Californian's skimp on electricity? And how much wattage will the power wholesalers themselves take off line? Power producers have been charged with deliberately shutting down plants to keep prices high. Smutny-Jones has a different explanation for the down time. ??Mr. SMUTNY-JONES: California's electric power system is rapidly aging. We have not built a power plant of an appreciable amount in over a decade. ?And there--while there's power plants being built now, the average age of these power plants is in excess of 36 years old. ?That's the average age, which means that a significant amount of the fleet is older than that. ?They break down. ??KORRY: The industry, itself, is partly to blame for the aging fleet. The Energy Commission did license small generators during the 1990s. ?And if bigger ones weren't built, it's largely because the energy producers, themselves, balked at building them. ?Chris Seiple, with RDI Consulting, says construction slowed everywhere; that is, until last year. ?Since 2000, he says, 90,000 new megawatts of energy have come online nationwide. ?That's more capacity in two years than was built during all of the 1990s. ?And now comes the Bush national energy policy, urging even greater production. ?According to Seiple, we could wind up with too much of a good thing. ??Mr. CHRIS SEIPLE (RDI Consulting): So we really expect that in--What?--50 markets we will go from a situation of having shortages to having too much supply. ??KORRY: In yesterday's speech, President Bush repeated the administration's claim that the nation will need at least 1,300 additional power plants over the next two decades. ?Seiple says an over supply would drive down prices, hurting the power wholesalers, but lower energy costs would suit most ratepayers just fine. ?Elaine Korry, NPR News, San Francisco. ??CHADWICK: It's 19 minutes past the hour. LOAD-DATE: May 19, 2001 ???????????????????????????????3 of 3 DOCUMENTS ????????????????Copyright 2001 Burrelle's Information Services ?????????????????????????????CBS News Transcripts ?????????????????????SHOW: CBS EVENING NEWS (6:30 PM ET) ????????????????????????????May 17, 2001, Thursday TYPE: Newscast LENGTH: 430 words HEADLINE: CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR THREATENS TO TAKE MATTERS INTO HIS OWN HANDS IF THE GOVERNMENT OFFERS NO RELIEF FOR THE STATE'S ENERGY CRISIS ANCHORS: DAN RATHER REPORTERS: BILL WHITAKER BODY: ??DAN RATHER, anchor: ??There was another blackout in Minnesota just today. ?The power company pulled the plug again on some businesses there, and in Iowa and Illinois, because there just wasn't enough supply to meet the demand. ?The supply problem is even worse in California, and with little or no immediate help coming from the president, CBS' Bill Whitaker reports the governor is threatening fast, dramatic action. ??BILL WHITAKER reporting: ??Six times this year lights have gone out in parts of California when heat triggered a surge in demand. ?Today, Governor Gray Davis deflected the political heat, blasting the Bush energy plan as inadequate. ??Governor GRAY DAVIS (Democrat, California): I fault the president for not providing California with any immediate relief. ??WHITAKER: In a major power play of his own, Davis has threatened to seize the facilities of Reliant Energy, a Texas-based supplier and major Bush contributor, if Reliant doesn't cut prices. ??But I told the generators face to face, I said, 'Your fate is in your hands. If you don't help me get through this summer with a minimum of disruptions, then you leave me no choice but to sign a windfall profits tax and to seize plants.' ??WHITAKER: All five of Reliant's Southern California plants are natural gas powered, supplying electricity to three million houses. ?Davis has called Reliant the greediest of all the out-of-state suppliers. ?Reliant wouldn't comment on camera, but the industry says takeover talk is more political than economic. ??Mr. JAN SMUTNY-JONES (Independent Energy Producers Association): Seizing private property didn't work in Cuba and it's not going to work in California, either. ??WHITAKER: A state takeover of Reliant could backfire, scaring off other out-of-state generators. ?But analysts say California, which already uses less energy per capita than any other state, has few options. ??Mr. MARK BERNSTEIN (Energy Analyst, Rand Corp.): The only other thing that can happen is for the federal government to take action to moderate prices. And if the gov--federal government doesn't take those actions, the governor may not have any choice. ??WHITAKER: Some California legislators suggest creating a buyers' cartel with Washington and Oregon to jointly muscle down prices and even risk blackouts if suppliers won't comply. ?So far Oregon and Washington aren't convinced, but California must do something. ?Last year, electricity cost 400 percent more than the year before. ?And this year, prices are rising still. ?Bill Whitaker, CBS News, Los Angeles. LOAD-DATE: May 19, 2001 Copyright 2001 / Los Angeles Times ??????????????????????????????Los Angeles Times ?????????????????????May 19, 2001 Saturday ?Home Edition SECTION: California; Part 2; Page 1; Metro Desk LENGTH: 704 words HEADLINE: PUC Allegations Detailed; Hearing: The commission president tells a Senate panel that maintenance records show no valid reason for generators to cut power production. BYLINE: ROBERT J. LOPEZ, RICH CONNELL, TIMES STAFF WRITERS BODY: ??The head of the California Public Utilities Commission Friday provided fresh details showing that power generators scaled back electricity production and then benefited from the resulting high prices. ??In sworn testimony before a state Senate committee, PUC President Loretta Lynch said the companies' behavior helped drain so much electricity from the state's grid that officials were forced to declare emergency alerts. ??Lynch's testimony followed her comments Thursday to The Times that state investigators have found evidence of power plants being shut down unnecessarily to create "artificial shortages," often when the state was most desperate for electricity. ??During her testimony Friday, Lynch went beyond her assertions about unnecessary plant shutdowns and accused generators of also needlessly throttling back generation. ??The PUC and state Atty. Gen. Bill Lockyer are jointly investigating the exorbitant wholesale power prices that have cost California billions and brought major utilities to financial ruin. ??Generators have said they never engaged in any conduct intended to manipulate wholesale electricity prices, including unnecessarily shutting down their plants or reducing supply. The facilities, they say, are aging and have run so hard during the state's crisis that they often require extensive maintenance. ??But the details released by Friday by Lynch added to the questions surrounding the generators' activities. ??Lynch displayed charts that track electricity prices and power generation at three plants on a single day last November. After the plants reduced production during the middle of the day, the graphs show, the state was forced to declare two separate power emergencies because electricity reserves had fallen seriously low. ??The shortfall in supply helped cause a spike in prices. With that, the companies operating the three plants suddenly increased their electricity production to almost full capacity, allowing them to capitalize on the much higher rates. ??"We certainly see a pattern," Lynch told the committee, which is investigating alleged manipulation of the state's wholesale power market by energy suppliers. "Many generators are playing on their experience and playing, to an extent, California." ??Maintenance records reviewed by investigators show that there were no valid reasons for the plants to cut back production, Lynch said. She declined to identify the power plants involved, saying only that they are owned by at least two companies. ??Sen. Joseph Dunn (D-Santa Ana), who heads the special committee investigating alleged market manipulation, said Lynch's information, on its face, is "very damning." ??He said his committee has uncovered additional preliminary evidence showing that several power companies have allegedly engaged in similar behavior. ??"We are looking at data that is suspicious," Dunn said. ??During a break in Friday's hearing, a spokeswoman for a trade group of major power suppliers said there have been no coordinated efforts to shrink supplies to increase profits. ??"There has been no collusion," said Jean Munoz of the Independent Energy Producers Assn. ??She said many of the plants bought by out-of-state generators under California's flawed deregulation plan are more than 30 years old. The plants have been running at high levels to help the state with its energy crunch, she said. ??Munoz told reporters that the plants owned by out-of-state companies last year produced 60% more electricity than the previous year. ??Although no firm has been singled out by the PUC or the attorney general's office, Atlanta-based Mirant Corp. said inspectors have visited company plants more than 100 times this year and have found no wrongdoing. "Mirant has run its plants voluntarily and continually throughout the crisis," the company said in a statement Friday. ??But Lynch said Friday that visits to more than 80 plants by PUC investigators since December show that generators are not always producing all the power they can. ??"It appears that there have been numerous instances within the past half-year where generation units were not producing the amount of electricity that they were capable of producing," Lynch said. LOAD-DATE: May 19, 2001 Copyright 2001 / Los Angeles Times ??????????????????????????????Los Angeles Times ??????????????????????May 21, 2001 Monday ?Home Edition SECTION: California; Part 2; Page 7; Metro Desk LENGTH: 782 words HEADLINE: The State; ; Davis Says Bad Guys Went Thataway, to Texas BYLINE: GEORGE SKELTON BODY: ??When the lights go dark, this is what Gov. Gray Davis wants us to see: President Bush and V.P. Dick Cheney smirking as their Texas pals make off with our money. ??Shutting down power and killing jobs on their way out the door. ??This is pre-summer, a time for creating images that will stay with us through the blackout season and into next year's elections. ??The image Davis is trying to implant in our senses is that of the president and the power profiteers in collusion. Texans in cahoots. Bush and the bullies. ??Actually, it's an easy portrait to paint--an oil landscape with these scenes reflecting reality: ??Bush and Cheney come from Texas oil backgrounds. Texas energy companies bankroll Bush running for president. The companies hit a gusher in California's botched deregulation. Our electricity costs soar from $7 billion in 1999 to $27 billion in 2000 and may top $60 billion this year. Supply and demand? Demand increased less than 4% last year. ??Davis pleads for temporary wholesale price caps. Bush and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission won't hear of it. They also ignore California's findings of $6.3 billion in gouging. ??Davis has been drawing this picture with increasing fervor--in a Washington Post op-ed piece, in Saturday's official Democratic response to the president's weekly radio address, in Q&As: ??"Where is that money going? Simply put, into the pockets of the generators and marketers . . . many of them located in Texas. . . . ??"Mr. President, with all due respect, I urge you to stand up to your friends in the energy business and exercise the federal government's exclusive responsibility to ensure energy prices are reasonable. . . . ??"Californians want to know whether you're going to be on their side. . . . You're allowing the price-gouging energy companies to get away with murder." ??Independent pollster Mark Baldassare puts it in context: "We're at the point in this crisis where people soon will begin to reassign blame." ??Until now, fingers have been pointed at past actors--former Gov. Pete Wilson, the 1996 Legislature, the private utilities. Now, present performances are being scrutinized--not only Bush's, but especially Davis'. He's vulnerable for having reacted slowly to the emerging crisis last summer. ??A new Baldassare poll being released today by the Public Policy Institute of California tells the story: The familiar utilities, Wilson and the old Legislature are blamed by 58% of Californians for the current mess. Davis and the present Legislature, the enigmatic power generators and the Bush administration are blamed by only 28%. ??"People are going to stop thinking about what happened five years ago and start focusing on what's happening this year," Baldassare says. "How will those 58% get reallocated? Their attitudes are going to be shaped in the next month or so. That's what all the political maneuvering is about right now." ??It's why Davis is starting to name generators--like Houston-based Reliant Energy--and tie them to the president from Texas. It's why he keeps repeating: "Mr. President, you didn't create this problem. But you are the only one who can solve it." ??Davis also thinks it's conceivable a pressured president will reverse himself and support temporary price caps. If not that, some "creative price relief." One option, he says, is for FERC to acknowledge the massive gouging and order huge refunds. ??Until lately, Davis had been deferential toward the new president. ??"Initially, the governor felt he could reason with the Bush administration," says Garry South, his political advisor. "But he really got ticked off when it became clear that not only was the administration unsympathetic, but most likely was hanging us out to dry. Especially galling were Cheney's inaccurate and irresponsible--not to mention haughty--comments about California." ??Cheney recently told The Times he'd oppose price caps even if runaway energy costs threatened the nation's economy. ??Baldassare's poll shows the political volatility. Davis' job rating has dropped significantly since January--down from 63% approval then to 46% now, with 41% disapproval. Only 29% approve of the way he's handling electricity; 60% disapprove. ??Bush's job rating is high--57% to 36%--but only 33% approve of his performance on electricity; 56% disapprove. ??People are focused on this debacle--82% following it "closely" in the news. Opinions are shifting. Images are being shaped. ??If Bush could open his mind, broaden his ideology and provide price relief-- truly be a compassionate conservative--maybe he'd be a hero. ??If not, Davis will be painting that Texas landscape all summer long. LOAD-DATE: May 21, 2001 ?????????????????????????????12 of 207 DOCUMENTS ????????????????????Copyright 2001 Chicago Tribune Company ???????????????????????????????Chicago Tribune ???????????????May 21, 2001 Monday, NORTH SPORTS FINAL EDITION SECTION: Business; Pg. 3; ZONE: CN; INSIDE TECHNOLOGY. LENGTH: 758 words HEADLINE: Power demands set stage for boom in backup systems BYLINE: BY JON VAN. BODY: ??Electricity deregulation is just one trend that's putting a big smile on the faces of folks at Schneider Electric's North American division in Palatine these days. ??There's also the rapid growth of electronic gear that requires electric current that flows without interruption or variation, and the concern over reliability of the public power grid. ??The new complexity is pushing electrical power from commodity status into a new category as a resource that requires a lot of expertise, and Schneider executives are devising strategies to take advantage of the new situation. ??Schneider, parent to the Square D brand of electrical control products, is telling customers that it's short-sighted of them to buy transducers, circuit breakers and the like from the lowest bidder. Instead, goes this argument, they need to turn over their electrical needs to Schneider to provide an end solution instead of a lot of piecemeal products. ??"We're saying you have to spend money to save money," said Amelia Huntington, Schneider's strategic accounts vice president. ??California's electrical outages and the problems of Chicago's Commonwealth Edison a few years ago have convinced many business managers of the wisdom of having a back-up supply of electrical power for when the grid goes dead, she said. ??Schneider hopes to enter some agreements with customers to own and maintain electrical infrastructure on their premises in a fee-for-service arrangement that goes beyond the traditional deal where Schneider sells equipment that a customer then owns, operates and maintains. ??So far the firm hasn't sealed such a deal, but it has had talks with customers along those lines, Huntington said. It does have several customers that have moved away from traditional open bidding relationships with multiple vendors. ??An example is an IBM plant that uses 130 kilovolts to fabricate computer chips around the clock seven days a week. Any loss of power, even for a fraction of a second, could cost the plant millions of dollars, Huntington said. ??"Electrical power used to be something that was a given, and manufacturers didn't think about it much," Huntington said. "But that's changing fast, and it provides us with a marvelous opportunity. We are telling our customers that we want to be their mini-powerhouse." ??Aflutter over fiber: The upgrade of its phone networks that SBC Communications Inc. has dubbed Project Pronto is at something of an impasse in Illinois, but the phone giant is moving ahead with it in Texas and California. ??Executives at Ameritech claim that requirements imposed by the Illinois Commerce Commission, which call for upgraded network facilities to be shared with competitors, are unworkable. Consequently, they have declined to use Pronto upgrades to expand the number of customers who can get high-speed Internet DSL service. ??Elsewhere in SBC territory, the Pronto upgrades are being extended to offer direct fiber connections to some small businesses. Plans call for SBC to offer fiber to consumers' homes in the near future. ??While telecom strategists have talked about fiber to the home for about a decade, SBC's plans mark the most aggressive implementation in recent memory. Fiber provides so much information-carrying capacity that a single strand of glass can carry TV programs, high-speed Internet and Napster music downloads with excess capacity to spare. ??But it may not get much beyond the experimental stage, suggests a local consultant. Scott Bender, a Chicago-based vice president of Bain & Co., said that despite the technology lure of bringing fiber to residences, the economic feasibility of fiber to the home remains elusive. ??The problem, Bender said, is the cost of the equipment that converts the photons of light that travel on optical fiber into electrons that make computers, televisions and phones work. ??"Why spend hundreds of dollars for electronics at every home?" Bender asked. "Instead you can bring fiber into a neighborhood and have one set of electronics handle many customers, using copper wire to make the connection for the last few hundred feet. ??"The fact is that copper can provide all the bandwidth that any home-based application requires." ??Even though Bender is skeptical that the market is ready for fiber to the home just yet, he doesn't criticize SBC management for trying it. ??"Every major carrier probably should do experiments like this every few years," he said. "That way they won't get caught flat-footed when something new finally sticks." Business. Technology. LOAD-DATE: May 21, 2001 ?????????????????????????????13 of 207 DOCUMENTS ???????????????????The Associated Press State & Local Wire The materials in the AP file were compiled by The Associated Press. ?These materials may not be republished without the express written consent of The Associated Press. ????????????????????????May 21, 2001, Monday, BC cycle ?????????????????????????????8:34 AM Eastern Time SECTION: State and Regional LENGTH: 273 words HEADLINE: New poll suggests Californians haven't been this gloomy for years DATELINE: SAN FRANCISCO BODY: ??Not since the mid-'90s have more Californians believed the state is headed in the wrong direction. ??And it may get worse. ?Nearly 60 percent of state residents expect the economy to worsen in the next year, while about 40 percent see a brighter horizon, according to a new poll. ??The telephone survey of 2,001 adult Californians was done over eight days in early May by the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California. The poll was conducted in English and Spanish. ??The twin culprits were the souring economy and the electricity crisis. ??"Californians clearly see the electricity crisis as a harbinger of other growth-related problems," said Mark Baldassare, the research institute's survey director. "This crisis and general economic uncertainty have severely undermined public confidence in California's future and in its leaders." ??Change has come swiftly. ??In January, 62 percent of state residents said California was headed in the right direction, compared to 48 percent this month. ??Other key findings include: ??-82 percent of respondents said population growth over the next 20 years will make California a less desirable place to live. ??-86 percent of respondents said the electricity crisis will hurt the state's economy. ??-43 percent of respondents favor building more power plants, up from 32 percent in January. The second most popular solution, re-regulating the electricity industry, was the favored solution in January. ??-Traffic congestion, affordable housing, air pollution and a shortage of good jobs top the list of negative consequences respondents foresee from the state's population growth. LOAD-DATE: May 21, 2001 ?????????????????????????????14 of 207 DOCUMENTS ???????????????????The Associated Press State & Local Wire The materials in the AP file were compiled by The Associated Press. ?These materials may not be republished without the express written consent of The Associated Press. ????????????????????????May 21, 2001, Monday, BC cycle ?????????????????????????????6:43 AM Eastern Time SECTION: State and Regional LENGTH: 901 words HEADLINE: 'Baseline' becoming key word for electric customers BYLINE: By KAREN GAUDETTE, Associated Press Writer DATELINE: SAN FRANCISCO BODY: ??A little calculation on electric bills is fast becoming a big concern for millions of residential customers of California's two largest utilities. ??Sitting near the top of Southern California Edison electric bills, and near the bottom of the last page of Pacific Gas and Electric bills, is a number called baseline, which guarantees a certain amount of electricity at the lowest price utilities charge. ??This number, which differs from customer to customer based on a host of factors, is the benchmark for determining how much more residents will pay for electricity come June - when the largest rate hikes in California history start showing up on bills. ??"Now with deregulation and prices being so much higher, it's going to require that people educate themselves about their bills the same way they had to do when long distance telephone service was deregulated," said Commissioner Carl Wood of the Public Utilities Commission. ??Under a rate-hike allocation plan approved Tuesday by the PUC, everyone who exceeds baseline by more than 30 percent will pay progressively more for that additional electricity - with the heaviest residential users facing a 37 percent average hike on their overall bill, translating to an increase of roughly $85 a month. ??State law ensures that residential customers who don't use more than 30 percent above baseline will not face the rate hikes. The PUC figures around half of PG&E and Edison customers now fall into that category. ??But consumer rights groups, and even the utilities, think the PUC is underestimating residential electric use, given the recent proliferation of home computers, cell phone chargers and the like. ??They think baseline is set too low for many customers, and say families and people who work at home will pay more than their fair share of the rate hikes. ??"It's an anti-family action. People with kids have a hard time staying within baseline," said Mike Florio, senior attorney with The Utility Reform Network. "A rate hike of 30 to 40 percent could be 100 percent for people with large households." ??Since 1982, when lawmakers created baseline - given in cents per kilowatt hour per month - to ensure a minimum amount of affordable power and encourage conservation, the PUC has determined baseline by dividing the state into climatic and geographic regions. ??PG&E has 10 such regions within its service territory in northern and central California; Edison has six in central and southern California. ??The PUC then finds the average amount of electricity use for customers within each region. The baseline quantity is 50 percent to 60 percent of that amount, and up to 70 percent of that amount during the winter months if a customer uses only one type of energy (electricity or natural gas). ??Customers who depend on electronic medical equipment such as suction, breathing and dialysis machines, can apply for a slightly higher baseline. ??A family living in the scorching hot Coachella Valley would have a larger allotment of lower-priced electricity than a family living in breezy Monterey, given that air conditioning for the former is necessary to survival. ??Since baseline is based on averages, a single apartment dweller and a family of four who live in the same region could have the same baseline. That makes it more likely for the family to get hit with rate hikes and less likely, economists fear, that the apartment dweller has a financial incentive to conserve. ??"Where it is imperfect is that it has no ability to make any adjustments for the size of the family," said John Nelson, a PG&E spokesman. ??Focusing baseline on household size gets complicated, Florio said. "Does PG&E come by and do bed checks?" ??Along with raising $5.7 billion to replenish the state's general fund for power buys since January, the rate hikes approved March 27 by the PUC and allocated on Tuesday were also meant to trigger conservation that could help avoid rolling blackouts this summer. ??Baseline has not been reassessed since the early 1990s. PUC president Loretta Lynch and fellow commissioner Wood say they may hold hearings as early as this coming week on possible inequities and ways to update the system. ??"There was plenty of testimony at public hearings that people suspect that baselines are not appropriate or are not calculated right," Wood said. ??Wood said when baseline first was created nearly 20 years ago, houses were smaller and many lacked central air conditioning. ??Though the PUC has updated baseline amounts through the years, "living standards have changed, housing standards have changed and it may be that average usage is different from what it was," Wood said. ??Florio said giving baselines a second look could go either way for consumers. There are typically more electronic gadgets in homes these days, but many of those gadgets and appliances are more energy efficient than their ancestors. ??Add that to increased conservation statewide, Florio said, and there's a slim chance baselines could actually go down and expose more customers to rate hikes. ??"It's a percentage of average use historically, and people have used energy more efficiently," through the years, Florio said. ??--- ??On the Net: ??California Public Utilities Commission: http://www.cpuc.ca.gov ??Pacific Gas and Electric Co.: http://www.pge.com ??Southern California Edison Co.: http://www.sce.com LOAD-DATE: May 21, 2001 ?????????????????????????????15 of 207 DOCUMENTS ???????????????????The Associated Press State & Local Wire The materials in the AP file were compiled by The Associated Press. ?These materials may not be republished without the express written consent of The Associated Press. ????????????????????????May 21, 2001, Monday, BC cycle ?????????????????????????????4:03 AM Eastern Time SECTION: State and Regional LENGTH: 720 words HEADLINE: Grid officials, others studying planned blackouts BYLINE: By JENNIFER COLEMAN, Associated Press Writer DATELINE: SACRAMENTO BODY: ??Could Californians be waking up to hear a weather report, a pollen count and an electricity blackout forecast? ??It's not out of the question, say some lawmakers. ??"I actually think it's a thoughtful plan ... to give folks an opportunity to understand the likelihood of blackouts on a daily basis," Assemblyman Fred Keeley, D-Boulder Creek, the Assembly's point man on energy. ??Keeley compared it to "weather forecasting, to be able to look at the next three or four days, have a percentile about the likelihood of blackouts." ??The Independent System Operator, keeper of the state's power grid, is expected to release a report Monday detailing how such a plan would work. ??The idea is "to provide a lot of information so people can make choices to live with blackouts on a temporary basis this summer," Keeley said. ??Peter Navarro, a University of California, Irvine, economics professor, released a report last month with a consumer group that recommends the state set a price limit on what they'll pay for power. And if generators don't lower the price, the state should schedule blackouts to cut consumption, he said. ??The report by Navarro and the Utility Consumers' Action Network says the state's current method of "highly disruptive random rolling blackouts" needs to be revamped. ??UCAN suggests that the state be divided into blackout zones that utilities could notify ahead of time that power would be cut at a specific time and for a certain duration. ??Scheduling blackouts could attract criminals to outage areas, Keeley acknowledged, and possibly could subject the state to legal liability for traffic accidents or other incidents if power is deliberately shut off. ??"That is a genuine problem and genuine concern," Keeley said. "I think we would have to work with local governments so they could have a sufficient advance notice to be able to foresee that and try to deploy their resources appropriately." ??Critics of the planned blackouts said power producers simply could sell their unused electricity to other states, or trim back production to keep supplies short. ??Assemblyman Mike Briggs, R-Fresno, plans to introduce a bill this week that would have the Public Utilities Commission notify businesses and homeowners as much as one month ahead of time when they would have their power cut. ??"We owe the people of this state some kind of schedule," Briggs said. "If businesses and individuals knew what days their power could potentially be shut off or blacked out, they could plan for that blackout accordingly." ??The Central Valley Republican said the ability to plan for outages would be especially benefit farmers, who need power to irrigate their crops. ??Assembly Speaker Robert Hertzberg, who convened a special subcommittee on blackouts, has also suggested the state should consider scheduling daily blackouts to cut the state's power use and drive down prices. Democratic Assembly members plan to introduce their own version of a blackout plan. ??Sen. Debra Bowen, D-Marina del Rey, has said she envisions giving consumers three to five days notice that their power will be cut during a particular period, so businesses could opt to shut down or shift their operations to nonpeak hours such as nights and weekends. ??And by treating blackouts as a first option rather than a last resort, the state could cut its peak power needs and drive down prices, Bowen said. California power consumers would in essence form "a reverse cartel to stop the market manipulation and the price gouging," she said. ??The planned blackout suggestions come as state officials grow increasingly concerned that power prices will keep rising this summer, even beyond the extraordinary levels the state already has been paying on behalf of three cash-strapped privately owned utilities. ??Gov. Gray Davis said the state paid $1,900 per megawatt hour at one point last week. ??The state has dedicated $6.7 billion since mid-January to purchase power for Pacific Gas and Electric, Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas and Electric. ??Those expenditures will be repaid this summer when the state issues $13.4 billion in revenue bonds. The bonds will be repaid by ratepayers over 15 years. ??--- ??On the Net: ??California Independent System Operator: http://www.caiso.com/ LOAD-DATE: May 21, 2001 ?????????????????????????????27 of 207 DOCUMENTS ??????????????????????Copyright 2001 / Los Angeles Times ??????????????????????????????Los Angeles Times ??????????????????????May 20, 2001 Sunday ?Home Edition SECTION: Part A; Part 1; Page 21; National Desk LENGTH: 709 words HEADLINE: THE NATION; ; As Energy Prices Rise, So Does the Rancor; Politics: Gov. Davis says power plan comes at the expense of consumers. Bush blames Democrats for environmental curbs. BYLINE: EDMUND SANDERS, TIMES STAFF WRITER DATELINE: WASHINGTON BODY: ??President Bush and Democratic leaders decried the rising cost of energy Saturday, but Bush implicitly blamed Democrats for outmoded environmental restrictions while Democrats explicitly blamed Bush for favoring the energy industry over consumers. ??Speaking for Democrats, California Gov. Gray Davis said the energy plan that the president unveiled Tuesday would do nothing to alleviate the immediate threats of rising gasoline prices and blackouts in California. ??The president's plan "simply favors more energy production at the expense of everything else," said Davis, who has unsuccessfully lobbied the Bush administration to temporarily cap wholesale prices until new power plants can be brought on line. ??Davis, whose popularity has sunk during the crisis, noted that companies from Bush's home state of Texas were the targets of most allegations of price-gouging in California by out-of-state energy suppliers. ??"Mr. President, runaway energy prices are not just a California problem," Davis said. "With all due respect, I urge you to stand up to your friends in the energy business and exercise the federal government's exclusive responsibility to ensure that energy prices are reasonable." ??Bush so far has tried to stay above the fray, letting his aides respond to criticisms. "It's time to leave behind rancorous old arguments and build a positive new consensus," the president said Saturday in his weekly radio address. ??But the rancor is certain to continue. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee on Saturday announced the launch of a monthlong radio and television advertising campaign targeting Republican lawmakers whom they blame for not doing enough to ease the energy crunch. ??The campaign specifically criticizes Rep. Stephen Horn (R-Long Beach) for opposing a temporary cap on electricity prices. It is scheduled to start Monday with a 30-second spot that ends with a message urging viewers to call Horn's offices for immediate action. ??"California's energy crisis is deepening, with summer blackouts predicted and rate hikes of up to 80%," the ad states. "Yet President Bush has offered no relief to hard-pressed ratepayers. . . . Our representative, Steve Horn, has joined with Bush in opposing a temporary cap on electricity prices. Call Horn and tell him we need action now." ??Mark Nevins, a committee spokesman, said the ad campaign is part of an effort to hold Horn and fellow Republicans accountable for lack of leadership on the energy issue. ??"Horn's party controls the House, the Senate and the White House--and they have yet to do a thing to provide some immediate relief to California's families," Nevins said. ??House Minority Leader Richard A. Gephardt (D-Mo.) called on Bush on Saturday to endorse temporary price caps to stop what he termed 10- and even 20-fold increases in Californians' energy bills. ??Appearing on CNN's "Evans, Novak, Hunt & Shields," Gephardt also said Bush should have included his tax incentives for energy conservation in the giant tax cut bill that is moving through Congress. ??"The good parts of his plan are not in his budget and not in his tax bill, which really makes a mockery of what he's really suggesting," Gephardt said. "We're putting through this week, supposedly, a $1.3-trillion tax cut--probably the biggest tax cut in our history. And there's not a penny in it for the energy stuff that he suggested this week." ??The president's energy plan calls for greater production of power and fuel, tax breaks for conservation and construction of new nuclear plants. ??Two of its most controversial elements are opening Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for drilling and giving federal agencies power to force landowners to sell property needed for new electricity transmission lines. ??Responding to growing complaints from environmentalists, Bush insisted that new technologies would enable the nation to boost energy production without hurting the environment. ??"Too often, Americans are asked to take sides between energy production and environmental protection," Bush said. "The truth is, energy production and environmental protection are not competing." ??* ??Times staff writer Robert Marosi in Los Angeles contributed to this story. LOAD-DATE: May 20, 2001 ?????????????????????????????28 of 207 DOCUMENTS ??????????????????????Copyright 2001 / Los Angeles Times ??????????????????????????????Los Angeles Times ??????????????????????May 20, 2001 Sunday ?Home Edition SECTION: Part A; Part 1; Page 16; National Desk LENGTH: 930 words HEADLINE: THE NATION; ; Spencer Abraham Is Running on Energy, Not Charisma; Profile: Charged with selling Bush's initiative, 'workhorse' new to the field is facing a hard row. BYLINE: FAYE FIORE, TIMES STAFF WRITER DATELINE: WASHINGTON BODY: ??Now that President Bush's energy plan has been pondered, penned and rolled out, the task of selling it to the American people falls in large part to a 48-year-old father of three who drives a green Chrysler minivan and jokes of having "a face made for radio." ??Spencer Abraham, the man who accepted the job of Energy secretary knowing precious little about energy, takes his place as promoter in chief for the plan designed to "finally put America on the right course," as he likes to put it. ??It was Vice President Dick Cheney who conceived the 105-point blueprint, engineered over pots of coffee at an ornate 19th century table in his office. Now Cheney cedes the spotlight to Abraham, a self-described "workhorse, not show horse" whose admitted lack of charisma helped cost him his Senate seat last year after just one term as a Michigan congressman. ??Abraham, the grandson of Lebanese immigrants, wears his shoes until they wear out and gets haircuts when his staff reminds him. His idea of a good time is hot dogs with his wife, son and twin daughters in the food court of a Virginia shopping mall. ??"It's not a charismatic plan, so it doesn't require a charismatic guy," said William Kristol, editor of the conservative Weekly Standard magazine who served with Abraham on former Vice President Dan Quayle's staff. "He is of working-class origins; not a glib talker. He'll have a shrewd sense of how to sell this plan, as well as a real understanding of it." ??On the eve of the energy plan's unveiling Thursday, Abraham was the only administration spokesman trotted out for the network news. Friday he made the rounds of morning TV news shows, delivering the party line that conservation alone will not solve the problem, that more energy sources must be generated. ??And on the Op-ed pages of Friday's Wall Street Journal, he sought to counter complaints that the plan is anti-environment and would only help big business. ??"Americans love and want an unlimited supply of affordable energy, but they don't like virtually each of the sources that provide it," Abraham said in a recent interview. "Coal is too dirty, nuclear isn't safe, hydropower kills fish, windmills threaten birds." ??His mission is to persuade the people otherwise. It is a job that comes with little power and lots of room for blame. ??The Department of Energy, which then-Sen. Abraham sought to abolish in 1999, shares splintered authority with several other agencies. What it does command is often controversial: the nuclear weapon labs that came under scrutiny after security breaches at its Los Alamos, N.M., facility and oversight of the nation's aging nuclear arsenal. ??But his greatest challenge is likely to come this summer in California, when anticipated electricity shortages will cause the lights to go out, air conditioners to shut down and whopping utility bills to arrive in the mail. ??Then Abraham is poised to become California's pinata, the federal official who gets the stick because, Bush administration critics will argue, the federal government has failed to deliver the caps on wholesale power rates that Gov. Gray Davis and others have sought. ??"The public is getting ready to be hit with a rate increase, and they are going to be mad as the devil," said a former member of Congress familiar with energy policy who declined to be identified to avoid offending the administration. ??Critics point to Abraham's lack of energy background as his greatest weakness. But what Abraham brought to his post--and what should serve him well--is political savvy, his supporters say. He headed the Michigan state Republican Party during most of the 1980s and joined Quayle's staff in 1990. He returned to Michigan to launch his Senate bid in 1993 and rode 1994's nationwide GOP tide into office. ??Abraham's voting record generally reflected the GOP congressional agenda: He loyally opposed abortion rights and favored free trade; his environmental record earned him the Sierra Club's lowest rating. But he made his mark by successfully challenging party leaders when they sought to reduce legal immigration to the United States. ??He spent more time working in the back rooms of Congress than in its limelight. He likes to tell the story of one early turn presiding over the Senate when he forgot about the live microphone and was caught on C-SPAN humming the children's song, "Do You Know the Muffin Man?" ??His supporters note he's a quick study, a Harvard-educated lawyer who has mastered the subject of energy in mere weeks. He starts work early and stays late, presenting his staff with checklists of things to do and ideas to explore. He has a knack for distilling an arcane science into language the public can understand. ??He may need all the communication skills he can muster to confront one of his most awkward tasks: telling the nation's most populous state it must solve its energy problem largely on its own. ??"California keeps saying, 'Why won't Washington do something?' " Abraham said, reiterating his opposition to electricity price caps he believes will only prolong the crisis. But he added: "The first call I made as secretary of Energy was to Gov. Davis. . . . We're not leaving any stones unturned." ??If Abraham was not practiced in front of the camera in his early career, he seems to be now. His performance has earned high marks at the White House, aides said. ??Not much briefing was required before he traveled with Bush to Minnesota for the energy plan's debut. He already knew the material, a staff member said. And he had gotten a haircut. LOAD-DATE: May 20, 2001 ?????????????????????????????30 of 207 DOCUMENTS ??????????????????????Copyright 2001 / Los Angeles Times ??????????????????????????????Los Angeles Times ??????????????????????May 20, 2001 Sunday ?Home Edition SECTION: California; Part 2; Page 3; Metro Desk LENGTH: 407 words HEADLINE: Los Angeles; ; Davis Launches Conservation Campaign; Electricity: Governor hands out fluorescent lightbulbs in his effort to get Californians to save power this summer. BYLINE: DALONDO MOULTRIE, TIMES STAFF WRITER BODY: ??Gov. Gray Davis' visit to Estella Burnett's Venice home Saturday had nothing to do with her steps at conserving energy. She was already doing her part. ??But Davis asked her to do more. ??The governor stopped at one other home in Burnett's neighborhood to help distribute compact fluorescent lightbulbs as part of the kickoff of "PowerWalk," a program designed to encourage California residents to conserve electricity during the state's energy-strapped summer. ??Members of the California Conservation Corps began distributing the energy efficient bulbs across the state Saturday. The plan is to deliver 1.5 million of them door-to-door in the next 17 weeks. ??The effort was welcomed at homes in Venice but residents, including Burnett, said more needs to be done. ??"I think the lightbulbs might help, but it's up to us to conserve," Burnett said after Davis left her home, adding that the Legislature can also do more. "They can build more power plants so we don't have to take up their slack." ??Conservation Corps members also visited the home of Owen Thomas, 25. ??The idea of handing out the bulbs struck Thomas as a novel, proactive way to spread the message of energy conservation, he said. ??To maximize his energy conservation efforts, Thomas limits his use of lights, he said. But he said still more needs to be done. ??"I doubt that's how people use [the bulk of] their energy," Thomas said. ??He said he cuts back on use of lights and his computer and doesn't use his air conditioners. ??Davis also paid a visit to the home of John Ghanie, 58, who lives across the street from Burnett. ??Ghanie said Davis' PowerWalk campaign is a good idea but he, too, believes other steps must be taken. ??"I think he is trying to do something," Ghanie said. "It should have been done years ago. The lightbulbs are good, but we need [power] plants. This is like a Band-Aid. We need a cure." ??Davis said he is committed to providing more energy to the state by authorizing construction of 15 plants, 10 of which are being built. ??He said California legislators are doing all they can to fight the energy battle. ??President Bush needs to step in and help California deal with the crisis, Davis said. ??Burnett, 66, said she is happy to help in attempts at conservation. "I wash clothes at night," she said. "We very seldom turn on the television; only to turn on the news. I use the dishwasher maybe once every other week." GRAPHIC: PHOTO: Gov. Gray Davis gives energy efficient fluorescent lightbulbs to Venice resident Estella Burnett. The California Conservation Corps will deliver 1.5 million of them door-to-door in the next 17 weeks. PHOTOGRAPHER: STEFANO PALTERA / For The Times LOAD-DATE: May 20, 2001 ?????????????????????????????40 of 207 DOCUMENTS ??????????????????Copyright 2001 McClatchy Newspapers, Inc. ????????????????????????????????Sacramento Bee ???????????????????May 20, 2001, Sunday METRO FINAL EDITION SECTION: MAIN NEWS; Pg. A3; CAPITOL & CALIFORNIA LENGTH: 704 words HEADLINE: One year later, we know it wasn't just a simple game of golf BYLINE: Dan Walters BODY: ??California will mark - but certainly not celebrate - an anniversary this week. It was exactly one year ago that a late spring heat wave swept over San Diego, and as air conditioners began drawing heavy amounts of power, San Diego Gas & Electric Co. began charging its customers high, market-oriented rates for juice. ??It was the beginning of the California energy crisis, or at least of public and political awareness that something was wrong. And a year later, every aspect of the crisis continues to grow worse. We are paying 10 times as much for power as we were two years ago. We have amassed more than $20 billion in private and public debt that will grow even with sharp increases in consumer power rates. And we face potentially life-threatening summer blackouts. ??Certainly the roots of the crisis extend much further than one year. They go back to decisions in the 1970s to stop major power plant construction and rely on conservation and alternative generating sources. And they include a momentous decision in the mid-1990s to adopt a "deregulation" plan that was an unworkable hybrid of open markets and price controls that left us at the mercy of out-of-state generators. Of more currency is what was and wasn't done in the last 12 months to fan that spark into a uncontrolled, and perhaps uncontrollable, firestorm. ??Gov. Gray Davis once said that he was approaching energy just as he plays golf, "one hole at a time." Unfortunately for Davis, and for the state, it was not a golf game, but one of three-dimensional, and perhaps four-dimensional, chess. To manage the crisis effectively, the Democratic governor needed the ability, either personally or through trusted aides, to pull together its disparate elements into a cohesive whole. ??The golfing approach was evident from the beginning, as Davis dealt with only the most immediate aspects of the situation as they evolved, rather than embracing it wholly and actively. Private and public energy experts warned that what was happening in San Diego was a harbinger of a larger crisis and proposed that the 1996 "deregulation" be suspended, that rates be raised slightly and that private utilities be given broad authority to enter into long-term supply contracts to stabilize the market. But Davis and his handpicked state Public Utilities Commission president, Loretta Lynch, stalled for time. ??Less than a month after the crisis first surfaced, the PUC voted 3-2 to authorize long-term supply contracts at about 5 cents a kilowatt-hour - slightly higher than wholesale prices had been, but ridiculously cheap by contemporary standards. Publicly owned utilities saw the looming price escalation and quickly locked up long-term supplies, but Lynch denounced the commission action as "a wrong turn" that could lead to higher consumer bills, and within days it was scuttled in legislation signed by Davis. ??Rather than face the issue comprehensively and proactively, Davis, Lynch and the Legislature opted for an expedient fix in San Diego, rolling back retail rates without addressing either supply or cost issues. Within weeks, private utilities were beginning to take on billions of dollars in debt as wholesale costs skyrocketed. ??Last summer's failure to act was compounded by other errors of judgment. It's clear now, for example, that it was a mistake for the state to continue buying power at sky-high rates when the utilities had exhausted their credit. Having a new deep pocket encouraged the generators to charge whatever the market would bear. ??A year after he could have nipped the crisis in the bud, but didn't, Davis is busily rewriting history and blaming others, principally Republicans, for the dilemma. But the governor cannot, or should not, escape the responsibility for approaching this very complex situation like a game of golf, or like some routine political dispute, and thus failing to apply the aggressive and sophisticated managerial touch that this crisis demanded from the onset. ??As Gen. George McClellan discovered at the Battle of Antietam during the Civil War, the unwillingness to take risk often leads to greater carnage. ??* * * ??The Bee's Dan Walters can be reached at (916) 321-1195 or dwalters@sacbee.com. LOAD-DATE: May 21, 2001 ?????????????????????????????42 of 207 DOCUMENTS ?????????????????Copyright 2001 The Chronicle Publishing Co. ?????????????????????????The San Francisco Chronicle ?????????????????????MAY 20, 2001, SUNDAY, FINAL EDITION SECTION: NEWS; Pg. A5 LENGTH: 1030 words HEADLINE: ENERGY CRUNCH; Investigations; Power firms fueled by greed, Lockyer says; Out-of-state generators face multiple probes SOURCE: Sacramento Bureau Chief BYLINE: Greg Lucas DATELINE: Sacramento BODY: Up the road in Folsom, at the nondescript headquarters of the Independent System Operator -- monitor-in-chief of California's energy grid -- they have a new job: responding to more than 40 detailed subpoenas. ???The data the ISO keeps on electricity transactions are central to the half-dozen investigations initiated by state and federal agencies into various parts of the state's energy mess, including possible criminal activity by power generators. ???"They're asking for everything and then some," a spokeswoman for the ISO, Stephanie McCorkle, said, sighing. ???The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the state Public Utilities Commission, the Assembly, the Senate, the state attorney general and a phalanx of state and federal auditors all are boring into California's energy mess. ???The main thrust of the most significant investigations is the conduct of power generators that have reaped record profits selling electricity to the electron-starved state. ???Although most investigators say the ISO's logs and bid records show the various generators used their market share to drive up prices, the issue is whether they did so acting collaboratively, either directly or indirectly. ???Generators deny any manipulation of the market. They say their prices simply reflect a lack of supply, plant breakdowns and the high cost of natural gas. ???But that hasn't stopped the state from trying to prove them wrong. ???Attorney General Bill Lockyer has been probing the actions of the generators since August to see if they manipulated the market or engaged in unfair business practices or if their executives engaged in criminal behavior. ???"We all feel we've been taken advantage of, been gouged," Lockyer said. "The question is whether it's legal greed or illegal greed. There's no question it's greed." ???Lockyer is in c
|