{"id":12230,"date":"2016-02-05T10:56:26","date_gmt":"2016-02-05T16:56:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/?p=12230"},"modified":"2016-02-05T11:31:29","modified_gmt":"2016-02-05T17:31:29","slug":"debunking-silly-arguments-for-utility-protectionism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2016\/02\/05\/debunking-silly-arguments-for-utility-protectionism\/","title":{"rendered":"Debunking Silly Arguments for Utility Protectionism"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-12232 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/38\/files\/2016\/02\/2008_Weak__Strong_Arguments_BRYANS.jpeg-300x201.jpeg\" alt=\"2008_Weak_&amp;_Strong_Arguments_BRYANS.jpeg\" width=\"300\" height=\"201\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/38\/files\/2016\/02\/2008_Weak__Strong_Arguments_BRYANS.jpeg-300x201.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/38\/files\/2016\/02\/2008_Weak__Strong_Arguments_BRYANS.jpeg-768x514.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/38\/files\/2016\/02\/2008_Weak__Strong_Arguments_BRYANS.jpeg.jpeg 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>Ohio utilities FirstEnergy and AEP, as readers of this blog know too well, want the Buckeye State to bail out their uneconomic power plants. Combined, their proposals before the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) would run Ohioans nearly $6 billion in increased costs. We understand where the companies\u2019 greedy desire for subsidies comes from, but the arguments for them have become downright silly.<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s review why FirstEnergy and AEP\u2019s bailout justifications don\u2019t hold up:<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>[Tweet &#8220;Debunking silly arguments for utility protectionism&#8221;]<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>The power giants <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/38\/files\/2016\/02\/PJM-Looking-at-AEP-FirstEnergy-PPAs-Critics-Join-Forces-_-RTO-Insider.pdf\"><strong>say<\/strong><\/a><strong> their subsidies will be good for customers by providing certainty about future electricity rates.<\/strong> The only certainty is those same customers will need to <a href=\"http:\/\/e67ti2w9ws71al8xmnhsozd3.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com\/files\/2016\/01\/OCC-Statement-FE-12-30-15.pdf\">pay<\/a> an extra $130 per year so the companies can enjoy bonuses and dividends.<\/li>\n<li><strong>They also argue the bailouts will be good for Ohio\u2019s businesses.<\/strong> Yet industrialists, which are major electricity consumers, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bizjournals.com\/columbus\/blog\/ohio-energy-inc\/2016\/01\/cooper-tire-ceo-power-proposals-a-political-gift.html\">say<\/a> the utilities\u2019 income-guarantee plans \u201cwill make it more difficult for [\u2026] Ohio manufacturers to remain competitive in the global markets.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>They claim the bailouts will save Ohioans money in the long run.<\/strong> According to a state agency, they will actually <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/38\/files\/2016\/02\/PJM-Looking-at-AEP-FirstEnergy-PPAs-Critics-Join-Forces-_-RTO-Insider.pdf\">cost<\/a> Ohio almost $6 billion.<\/li>\n<li><strong>FirstEnergy and AEP also say the lights will go out if they have to close their power plants.<\/strong> Reliability, no doubt, is an important issue. That\u2019s why the responsibility is in the hands of the regional grid operator, which can manage electricity across a wide area, not the regulators of an individual state. The regional regulator, in fact, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.pjm.com\/~\/media\/879A2FA2A1794C7887A98686A70336D2.ashx\">says<\/a> Ohio has lots of excess capacity and reliability is not an issue. Even the Public Utilities Commission chairman <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bizjournals.com\/columbus\/blog\/ohio-energy-inc\/2015\/08\/stop-trying-to-scare-ohioans-puco-chief-tells.html\">warned<\/a> the utilities to stop scaring Ohioans. Viewing reliability from another perspective, the regional power market ensures power plants that are needed are paid for their electric capacity. In other words, unnecessary units don\u2019t make the cut. The only reason FirstEnergy and AEP are seeking subsidies is their generators are expensive and not needed.<\/li>\n<li><strong>FirstEnergy and AEP <\/strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.dispatch.com\/content\/stories\/business\/2016\/01\/30\/1-critics-call-firstenergy-profit-guarantee-a-corporate-rescue-mission.html\"><strong>say<\/strong><\/a><strong> regulators need to protect their financial health.<\/strong> Last time we checked, the regulators\u2019 job is to protect the public interest \u2013 and to care more about fair customer bills than utility credit ratings.<\/li>\n<li><strong>FirstEnergy <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/38\/files\/2016\/02\/Dynegy-PJM-pile-on-in-case-against-Ohio-\u2018bailout\u2019-proposals-_-Midwest-Energy-News.pdf\"><strong>complains<\/strong><\/a><strong> Ohioans should not rely upon out-of-state power<\/strong>, forgetting electrons don\u2019t really care about state boundaries. Once they\u2019re on the regional grid, there\u2019s no telling where they\u2019ll end up. Plus, there are other Ohio-based generators willing to meet energy demand (like Dynegy, which has <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cleveland.com\/business\/index.ssf\/2016\/01\/new_power_plants_using_ohio_ga.html\">offered<\/a> alternative plans).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>AEP does say it\u2019s willing to support a few hundred megawatts of solar and wind power, but its requested subsidies would <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/38\/files\/2016\/02\/AEP-Stipulation.pdf\">ensure<\/a> dirty power plants continue operating and spewing more than a few <em>thousand<\/em> megawatts worth of pollution.<\/p>\n<p>Their strongest \u2013 although unspoken \u2013 argument seems to be political influence. The powerful utilities <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/38\/files\/2016\/02\/Lobbyist-tilted-playing-field-favors-FirstEnergy-and-AEP-in-Columbus_-Thomas-Suddes-_-cleveland.pdf\">have made<\/a> generous campaign contributions and hired trusted advisors to key elected officials, but the proposed \u201cdeals\u201d are bad for business, reliability, customers, and the environment.<\/p>\n<p>The PUCO should see right through these silly arguments and reject FirstEnergy and AEP\u2019s requests for subsidies.<\/p>\n<p><em>Photo source: <a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:2008_Weak_%26_Strong_Arguments_BRYANS.jpeg\">Wikimedia<\/a>\/Joan Bryans<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ohio utilities FirstEnergy and AEP, as readers of this blog know too well, want the Buckeye State to bail out their uneconomic power plants. Combined, their proposals before the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) would run Ohioans nearly $6 billion in increased costs. We understand where the companies\u2019 greedy desire for subsidies comes from, &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39893,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[46898,28800],"tags":[],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-12230","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-firstenergy","category-ohio"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Debunking Silly Arguments for Utility Protectionism - Energy Exchange<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2016\/02\/05\/debunking-silly-arguments-for-utility-protectionism\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Debunking Silly Arguments for Utility Protectionism - Energy Exchange\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Ohio utilities FirstEnergy and AEP, as readers of this blog know too well, want the Buckeye State to bail out their uneconomic power plants. Combined, their proposals before the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) would run Ohioans nearly $6 billion in increased costs. We understand where the companies\u2019 greedy desire for subsidies comes from, ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2016\/02\/05\/debunking-silly-arguments-for-utility-protectionism\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Energy Exchange\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-02-05T16:56:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2016-02-05T17:31:29+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/38\/files\/2016\/02\/2008_Weak__Strong_Arguments_BRYANS.jpeg-300x201.jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Dick Munson\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@dickmunson\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Dick Munson\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2016\\\/02\\\/05\\\/debunking-silly-arguments-for-utility-protectionism\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2016\\\/02\\\/05\\\/debunking-silly-arguments-for-utility-protectionism\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Dick Munson\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f12d49c16b0a7cb5764ad0a839d09769\"},\"headline\":\"Debunking Silly Arguments for Utility Protectionism\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-02-05T16:56:26+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2016-02-05T17:31:29+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2016\\\/02\\\/05\\\/debunking-silly-arguments-for-utility-protectionism\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":516,\"commentCount\":1,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2016\\\/02\\\/05\\\/debunking-silly-arguments-for-utility-protectionism\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/wp-content\\\/blogs.dir\\\/38\\\/files\\\/2016\\\/02\\\/2008_Weak__Strong_Arguments_BRYANS.jpeg-300x201.jpeg\",\"articleSection\":[\"FirstEnergy\",\"Ohio\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2016\\\/02\\\/05\\\/debunking-silly-arguments-for-utility-protectionism\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2016\\\/02\\\/05\\\/debunking-silly-arguments-for-utility-protectionism\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2016\\\/02\\\/05\\\/debunking-silly-arguments-for-utility-protectionism\\\/\",\"name\":\"Debunking Silly Arguments for Utility Protectionism - 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Dick currently focuses on creating new financing opportunities for efficiency, ensuring smart meters provide the real-time data that will enable consumers to cut energy and pollution, and building the business case for efficiency within commercial buildings. 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