Think

The holding companies for California’s two major utilities — one in bankruptcy and the other on the brink — belatedly last Tuesday reported multi-billion-dollar losses for 2000 after taking substantial after-tax charges in the fourth quarter because of uncollected wholesale power costs. Both indicated that California’s continuing energy crisis will impact overall financial results this year, and first-quarter earnings will need to be reported by May 15 under Securities and Exchange Commission requirements.

The holding companies for California’s two major utilities — one in bankruptcy and the other on the brink — belatedly Tuesday reported multi-billion-dollar losses for 2000 after taking substantial after-tax charges in the fourth quarter because of uncollected wholesale power costs. Both indicated that California’s continuing energy crisis will impact overall financial results this year, and first quarter earnings will need to be reported by May 15 under Securities and Exchange Commission requirements.

There’s one key requirement when building merchant power plants in Texas: think big, real big. FPL Energy LLC clearly followed that condition in announcing yesterday that it will take a lead role in building a 1,789 MW gas-fired merchant plant in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. It will be one of the largest independent generation projects in the state.

“I don’t think there’s a darn thing the [Bush] administration can do” to rescue California from the inevitability of energy supply shortages and blackouts this summer, a White House energy official said last week.

“I don’t think there’s a darn thing the [Bush] administration can do” to rescue California from the inevitability of energy supply shortages and blackouts this summer, a White House energy official said yesterday.

If you think the power crisis this winter has been bad, waituntil the summer peak. California Independent System Operator CEOTerry Winter made a shocking presentation to the newgovernor-appointed ISO board recently, revealing the likelihood ofa massive 6,815 MW shortfall of power supply by June.

Corporate energy managers in New York, New England and theMid-Atlantic overwhelmingly think that rising energy prices willadversely affect the U.S. economy this year and more than halfexpect the rising costs to hurt their businesses, according to asurvey conducted in late January for PSEG Energy Technologies ofEdison, NJ.

If you think the power crisis this winter has been bad, waituntil the summer peak. California Independent System Operator CEOTerry Winter made a shocking presentation to the newgovernor-appointed ISO board recently, revealing the likelihood ofa massive 6,815 MW shortfall of power supply by June.

Corporate energy managers in New York, New England and theMid-Atlantic overwhelmingly think that rising energy prices willadversely affect the U.S. economy this year and more than halfexpect the rising costs to hurt their businesses, according to asurvey conducted in late January for PSEG Energy Technologies ofEdison, NJ.