[stevehull]

Servicetech,

I have not looked at the new T5 lighting system. Is it the bulb or the fixture (ballast) in the T5 that is so expensive (or both).

Compared to LEDs, I believe that the T8 bulbs have a higher lumen output per watt of electricity - but need to find that documentation.

Anyone have that handy? And do you also have the new T5 information?

On the reduction of average use per household - I believe that we are just starting to the fruits of the labors with regard to "Energy Star" programs. There are some reviews that are nonsense (such as comparing electric resistance dryers for example). But overall, people DO pay attention to the "MPG" of their appliances, just as they do when they buy cars.

I look for a maintained and further flattening of the power demand curve over the next few years and see decommissioning of older coal fired (single cycle burners) rapidly as natural gas, photovoltaic and other technologies achieve parity (or significantly lower costs) compared to coal costs.

More and more utilities in the south require a balancing of their summer vs. winter power peaks. Typically, power demand, in the south peaks in the summer with AC use and is 1/2 to 1/3 that in the winter. Nevertheless, thy have to have the total capacity to achieve that summer peak with a significant fraction of generation capacity frankly idle in winter.

Use of geothermal technology on an industrial scale is just starting and that lowers the summer peak and increases the winter peak. That decreases the need for building more power plants. The start of this in residential is actually less than industrial.

I am excited to see this having been told by the electric utilities for decades that we MUST preplan for 5-7% increase in electrical demand per year (doubling of capacity every 10-12 years).

In general, utility commissions get what they demand and in the past got the go ahead to build the plants that we look at today with concern. But today, many utilities are looking VERY hard at distributed energy sources (residential PV, small scale wind, biomass, etc) as a way to rationally curtain costs, offer better services and allows better services in emergencies (such as when one part of the distribution system gets cut of by a natural disaster).

This is REALLY good news!

Steve