A Free-Market Energy Blog

ConU: Rate Base Diseconomies all the Way to the Bank (a parody)

By Jim Clarkson -- December 3, 2014

CONSOLIDATED UTILITIES (ConU) COMPANY ANNUAL REPORT

Management’s Letter to Stockholders

Dear Fellow Shareholders:

By now you have heard news reports of ConU’s $1 billion cost overrun on the construction of our nuclear plant. However, that’s just part of the good news we have to report.  If all goes according to plan, we will be able to overrun another $1 billion before the project is complete.  You are, of course, aware this extra $2 billion in our capital base will mean higher earnings for decades to come with increased dividends for us all.

This achievement brings with it challenges that your management team is well equipped to handle. While these wonderful cost overruns and the profits associated with them are something we can all be proud of, they come with increased public criticism, an enormous expenditure of political capital and problems for our regulatory allies.…

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“End Wind Welfare!” Let Me Count the Reasons

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- December 2, 2014

“The costs of the PTC overwhelmingly outweigh the benefits. Lawmakers should prioritize American households over wind industry lobbyists.”

– Institute for Energy Research, The Case Against the Wind Tax Credit, November 24, 2014.

Last week, the American Energy Alliance (AEA), the advocacy arm of the Institute for Energy Research, began a grassroots initiative to engage lawmakers about the need to reject attempts to revive the wind Production Tax Credit (PTC), “a decades-old subsidy that props up the wind industry and lines the pockets of wealthy investors at the expense of the American taxpayer.”

The call-to-action via digital and social media advertisements involves nine states: Kentucky, Ohio, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Texas, North Carolina, Utah, California, and Louisiana.

“President Obama said his policies were on the ballot this November and the American people rejected them,” stated Tom Pyle, AEA President.…

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AWED Energy & Environmental Newsletter: December 1, 2014

By -- December 1, 2014

The Alliance for Wise Energy Decisions (AWED) is an informal coalition of individuals and organizations interested in improving national, state, and local energy & environmental policies. Our basic position is that technical matters like these should be addressed by using Real Science. It’s all spelled out at WiseEnergy.org, which is a wealth of energy and environmental resources.

A key element of AWED’s efforts is public education. Towards that end, every 3 weeks we put together a newsletter to balance what is found in the mainstream media about energy and environmental matters. We appreciate MasterResource for their assistance in publishing this information.

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Greed Energy Economics:

The Appalling Truth About Energy Subsidies

How Green Energy Fleeces Consumers

AFP to Congress: Do Not Extend Wind PTC

Veto threat derails Reid tax (& PTC) deal

Wind Tax Credit (PTC) Attacked as U.S.

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Thanksgiving: A Free Market Celebration Too

By Richard Ebeling -- November 27, 2014
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Thanksgiving Remembrance: Don’t Take Liberty for Granted

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- November 26, 2014
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DOE Policy: In Search of Transparency (efficiency standards in controversy)

By -- November 25, 2014
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Taxpayer Alert: Big Wind Urging Congress for Yet Another Bailout

By Mary Kay Barton -- November 24, 2014
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Worldwatch Institute’s Case Against the PTC (1984 vs. 2014)

By Robert Bradley Jr. -- November 21, 2014
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Fossil Fuels Industries: Time to Stand Tall! (book review of Alex Epstein’s The Moral Case for Fossil Fuels)

By Erin Connors -- November 20, 2014
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Climategate’s Fifth Anniversary: Grubered Science (revisiting a controversy)

By Steve Goreham -- November 19, 2014
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