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Exeric · 02-01-14, 12:39 PM

I'm in accord with the basic ideas you are stating. There are several things to mention about the specific example of regulated power utilities. Even though they supply a service to almost every single person in every developed country they still exist as profit centers for shareholders. This may have to change as solar develops, especially photo voltaic.

The problem is that power utilities will always be necessary as long as solar PV is primarily part of a grid tied distributed network. A distributed network of electrical power will always need a command and control network to move power where and when it is needed. This is regardless of whether the electric utility actually provides the power. At some point a critical mass will develop of residential and commercial solar that impacts utilities' ability to provide an income source to shareholders as they provide less and less of the actual power. That is just a fact that we can look into the future and see if one is not blinded by greed to milk a cow that is so weak it can't even stand up.

The answer is not to milk the individual and commercial entities that will eventually replace utilities as producers of powers for their own needs. That's insane. It seems to me that eventually utilities will have to be stripped of their requirement to be a profit center and be treated just like any entity that serves the whole population. The department of transportation will be a better metaphor for what electric utilities are likely to become in the future. It is publicly funded by our tax dollars and we all partake in service they provide, like roads and traffic lights. No one expects them to make a profit because they just provide the infrastructure, not the actual trains, planes, and automobiles that get us from one place to another.

Right now the electric utilities are providing the equivalent of trains, planes, and automobiles, along with the roads, highways, and traffic signals. But how much longer will that be? During this transition phase the vast majority of the population will continue to use the integrated service electric utilities now provide and they should pay for it. But the government should start the transition to a non-profit making, service providing model that will eventually just be an infrastructure provider and not a service provider. If we don't plan ahead for that day this will turn into an awful mess. Sorry for the long comment.

02-01-14, 12:39 PM	#188
Exeric Apprentice EcoRenovator Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: California Posts: 274 Thanks: 19 Thanked 37 Times in 28 Posts	I'm in accord with the basic ideas you are stating. There are several things to mention about the specific example of regulated power utilities. Even though they supply a service to almost every single person in every developed country they still exist as profit centers for shareholders. This may have to change as solar develops, especially photo voltaic. The problem is that power utilities will always be necessary as long as solar PV is primarily part of a grid tied distributed network. A distributed network of electrical power will always need a command and control network to move power where and when it is needed. This is regardless of whether the electric utility actually provides the power. At some point a critical mass will develop of residential and commercial solar that impacts utilities' ability to provide an income source to shareholders as they provide less and less of the actual power. That is just a fact that we can look into the future and see if one is not blinded by greed to milk a cow that is so weak it can't even stand up. The answer is not to milk the individual and commercial entities that will eventually replace utilities as producers of powers for their own needs. That's insane. It seems to me that eventually utilities will have to be stripped of their requirement to be a profit center and be treated just like any entity that serves the whole population. The department of transportation will be a better metaphor for what electric utilities are likely to become in the future. It is publicly funded by our tax dollars and we all partake in service they provide, like roads and traffic lights. No one expects them to make a profit because they just provide the infrastructure, not the actual trains, planes, and automobiles that get us from one place to another. Right now the electric utilities are providing the equivalent of trains, planes, and automobiles, along with the roads, highways, and traffic signals. But how much longer will that be? During this transition phase the vast majority of the population will continue to use the integrated service electric utilities now provide and they should pay for it. But the government should start the transition to a non-profit making, service providing model that will eventually just be an infrastructure provider and not a service provider. If we don't plan ahead for that day this will turn into an awful mess. Sorry for the long comment.