The Virtual Utility

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xxii

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2. Introduction

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 1-1

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   2. Editor’s Introduction and Reader’s Guide to this Book

      • Shimon Awerbuch

      Pages 3-15

3. Historic and Strategic Perspective: From Monopoly Service to Virtual Utility

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 17-17

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   2. Consensus, Confrontation and Control in the American Electric Utility System: An Interpretative Framework for the Virtual Utility Conference

      • Richard F. Hirsh

      Pages 19-41

   3. The Virtual Utility

      • Andrew Vesey

      Pages 43-55

   4. Being Virtual: Beyond Restructuring and How We Get There

      • Karl R. Rábago

      Pages 57-67

4. The Virtual Utility: Planning and Strategic Investment Analysis

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 69-69

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   2. The Virtual Utility: Some Introductory Thoughts on Accounting, Learning and the Valuation of Radical Innovation

      • Shimon Awerbuch, Elias G. Carayannis, Alistair Preston

      Pages 71-96

   3. Justifying Capital Investments in the Emerging Electric Utility: Accounting for an Uncertain and Changing Industry Structure

      • Raj Aggarwal

      Pages 97-125

5. Back Matter

   Pages 127-131

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6. Risk Management, Options and Contracting for a Virtual Utility

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 133-133

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   2. Integrating Financial and Physical Contracting in Electric Power Markets

      • Chitru S. Fernando, Paul R. Kleindorfer

      Pages 135-174

   3. Capacity Prices in a Competitive Power Market

      • Frank C. Graves, James A. Read Jr.

      Pages 175-192

   4. Managing Risk Using Renewable Energy Technologies

      • Thomas E. Hoff, Cristy Herig

      Pages 193-213

7. Back Matter

   Pages 215-220

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8. Industrial Organization, Technological Change and Strategic Response to Deregulation

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 221-221

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   2. Monopoly and Antitrust Policies in Network-Based Markets such as Electricity

      • William Shepherd

      Pages 223-248

   3. Services in an Unbundled and Open Electric Services Marketplace

      • Shmuel S. Oren, Dennis J. Ray

      Pages 249-274

   4. Technological Change and the Electric Power Industry: Insights from Telecommunications

      • Bridger M. Mitchell, Peter J. Spinney

      Pages 275-295

In the winter of 1996, after 4 years of planning and research, the Symposium on the Virtual Utility was held in Saratoga Springs, New York. It was sponsored by Niag­ ara Mohawk Power Corporation, Co-sponsored by CSC Index and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority and hosted by Rensselaer Poly­ technic Institute, Troy, NY. The symposium sought to identify new areas of inquiry by presenting cutting-edge academic and practitioner research intended to further our understanding of the strategic, technologically-driven issues confronting the elec­ tricity production and distribution process. The program sought to offer new in­ sights into rapid changes in the utility industry, in part, by examining analogues from manufacturing and telecommunications. In addition to identifying new research areas, the symposium yielded a number of important findings and conclusions. This volume contains the presented papers of the meeting, the discussant reports and two special papers prepared by the meet­ ing rapporteurs who performed superbly in analyzing, synthesizing, explaining and generally bringing a cohesive perspective to the interesting yet complex set of ideas presented at this unique meeting. We would like to acknowledge the people and organizations that contributed to this effort. We thank Niagara Mohawk Power Corporation and Albert Budney, its President & Chief Operating Officer for sponsoring this project, and Andrew Vesey, Vice President, I whose vision, support and championing made this project possible.

• Electric Power
• Industrial Organization
• Standard
• communication
• control
• electricity
• environment
• interconnect
• manufacturing
• network
• organizations
• production

• Energy Finance and Economics, USA

  Shimon Awerbuch

• University of New Mexico, USA

  Alistair Preston

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