July 2, 2009

Plug-in Hybrid Vehicles and the New York Electric Power System

Michael Giberson The New York Independent System Operator – the folks the manage the electric power transmission system in the state – has released a report on the potential effects of plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEV) on New York power systems  operations.  Given the very early stage of technology development – if there are any PHEV’s …

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Walmart Supports Employer Health Care to Raise Rivals’ Costs

Lynne Kiesling I have to admit, I thought that this point was obvious. Clearly Walmart (accurately, I think) sees itself as well-positioned to leverage its size nationally to negotiate better health care arrangements than its competitors, so its newly-announced support of employer-based health care is a classic example of raising rivals’ costs. Apparently, it’s not …

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Technology and Changing the Business Model in the Electricity Industry

Lynne Kiesling Germany’s utility Yellow Strom is a technology leader. They are leading in the introduction of digital technology in the interface between their wires network and the customer’s home; for example they are one of the first partners with Google to roll out Google’s Power Meter, and they are working on an application that …

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Open-Road Electronic Tolling Also Reduces Emissions

Lynne Kiesling Today a post from Ben Casselman at the WSJ’s Environmental Capital highlights one of my favorite unintended benefits of open-road electronic tolling: by eliminating deceleration and acceleration to pay a cash toll, electronic tolling reduces emisssions, with one big caveat: So does eliminating toll booths really cut down on emissions? The answer appears …

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