Will deregulation put money in your pocket?There are those who are waiting anxiously for deregulation Deregulation The reduction or elimination of government power in a particular industry, usually enacted to create more competition within the industry. Notes: Traditional areas that have been deregulated are the telephone and airline industries. of the electricity market to put money in their pockets. And there are those who buy lottery tickets and let it ride in Atlantic City too. While electric utility deregulation may provide an opportunity to gain cost reductions, smart players aren't betting the farm on massive decreases in their electricity rate structure. Most are watching the California experiment, which has been rife with problems, unfulfilled contracts, insufficient supplies and broken promises. New Yorker's have a great opportunity to learn from California's many mistakes. To date, less than one percent of large New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. end users have seen any savings at all. And they have seen a modest three to five percent decrease, primarily in a reduction of sales tax sales tax, levy on the sale of goods or services, generally calculated as a percentage of the selling price, and sometimes called a purchase tax. It is usually collected in the form of an extra charge by the retailer, who remits the tax to the government. . Over the next five years, businesses may see a five to 12 percent net decrease in electricity rates. While there still is this promise for the future, there are a number of other proven strategies and tactics for savvy businesses to cut their electric costs. Many organizations have not reaped the full benefits of computerized energy controls and modern energy efficient equipment. The savings from electronic T-8 lighting systems; energy miser office retrofits; sensor controlled stairwell stair·well n. A vertical shaft around which a staircase has been built. stairwell Noun a vertical shaft in a building that contains a staircase Noun 1. , office, and restroom lighting; building automation and control systems; variable speed drives; and more efficient CFC-free HVAC (Heating Ventilation Air Conditioning) In the home or small office with a handful of computers, HVAC is more for human comfort than the machines. In large datacenters, a humidity-free room with a steady, cool temperature is essential for the trouble-free systems can combine to lower a building's electricity use by as much as 45 percent - dwarfing the deregulation savings. In the long nm, the real promise of deregulation lies in the potential to capitalize on the trend toward smaller, more efficient local energy sources. Just as the computer industry moved from large, centralized information systems to compact PC's, so too is energy generation evolving from large central power plants to condensed con·dense v. con·densed, con·dens·ing, con·dens·es v.tr. 1. To reduce the volume or compass of. 2. To make more concise; abridge or shorten. 3. Physics a. local power systems. The costs to purchase packaged gas cogeneration systems, fuel cells and photovoltaic The generation of voltage by a material that is exposed to light in the visible and invisible ranges. See photoelectric and photovoltaic cell. solar electricity have fallen drastically. In many instances, one or all of these technologies already provide competitively priced energy to the discerning purchaser. Since many of the innovations in these technologies are computer based, their evolution continues at a pace parallel to the computer electronics industry. Many in the real estate industry, including the Real Estate Board of New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of , are lobbying the New York State legislature for a bill that would provide a substantial tax incentive to building owners who create so-called "green buildings." Whether or not this bill passes, building owners and managers would be wise to investigate the potential of both energy efficiency and energy decentralized de·cen·tral·ize v. de·cen·tral·ized, de·cen·tral·iz·ing, de·cen·tral·iz·es v.tr. 1. To distribute the administrative functions or powers of (a central authority) among several local authorities. energy generation technologies in the planning for new construction or renovation. Ron Kamen is the President of Energy Technologies, Inc., a New York-based energy management company whose clients include The World Bank, Marsh McClennan Companies, Shearman & Sterling, and many Fortune 1000 companies. |
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