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RAP experts keep their finger on the pulse of the energy sector and provide timely analysis of topics impacting stakeholders TODAY.
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April 15, 2020
Modern Marginal Cost of Service Studies
- Jim Lazar ,
- Mark LeBel
The previous blog post in this series examined embedded cost of service studies — but some states choose to look ahead, considering marginal costs. This approach stems from the economic theory that today’s consumption drives tomorrow’s costs and customer classes… View Summary +
April 8, 2020
Three New EV Resources from RAP
The market for electric vehicles — from cars to buses to delivery vans — continues to expand around the world, and the pace of innovation is accelerating. While current public health and economic challenges may pose a temporary roadblock, it… View Summary +
February 5, 2020
For MADRI, the End of an Era … and the Beginning of Another
- John Shenot
Over the past 15 years, a group of power sector professionals have followed — and fostered — developments in an era of enormous change for the sector. In December, the group met in Washington DC for the 54th and final… View Summary +
January 28, 2020
Updating Embedded Cost of Service Studies for a New Era
- Jim Lazar ,
- Mark LeBel ,
- Paul Chernick
In the first blog post in this series, we outlined how our new manual, Electric Cost Allocation for a New Era, looks comprehensively at the process of dividing utility costs among customer classes — and proposes several ways it… View Summary +
January 6, 2020
Cost Allocation: New Approaches for a New Era
- Jim Lazar ,
- Paul Chernick ,
- William Marcus ,
- Mark LeBel
Setting electric utility rates has traditionally been a three-step process: first, determining the revenue requirement; second, determining how to equitably divide costs among classes of ratepayers; and third, designing the rates themselves. That second step, cost allocation, is a… View Summary +
October 23, 2019
A Hearty Bowl of Texas Soup: How ERCOT Keeps the Lights On
ERCOT (or the Electricity Reliability Council of Texas, the independent system operator of that state’s stand-alone wholesale market) has confounded the doomsayers once again. Despite dire predictions that ERCOT lacked sufficient generation capacity, it came through the peak summer season… View Summary +
October 3, 2019
Value Added: Measuring the Health Benefits of the “Layer Cake”
- Jim Lazar ,
- Nancy Seidman
In 2013, RAP released a pathbreaking publication, Recognizing the Full Value of Energy Efficiency. We refer to the main concept of this paper as “the layer cake,” after its centerpiece concept analogizing the multiple benefits of energy efficiency as… View Summary +
September 18, 2019
Clean, Flexible and Efficient: A Recipe for Energy Optimization
- John Shenot
The United States is the second-highest emitter of greenhouse gases on the planet — but we are also a leader in technological and economic strength. We have the capability to lead the world in finding solutions to the urgent challenge… View Summary +
August 29, 2019
Electric Cars Are a Lot Like Water Heaters
- Jim Lazar
People unfamiliar with electric cars often fear that a blossoming of EV ownership will bring chaos to the electric grid. For example, I recently spoke with the manager of a beach resort who was fearful of adding an EV charger,… View Summary +
June 19, 2019
Regulatory Reform is a Game of Hopscotch, Not a Flying Leap
- Jessica Shipley
The changes underway in the electricity industry are well documented: Demand is flat or declining; renewable energy and storage technology costs are plummeting; utilities and third parties are offering customers new technologies and services; and the need to cut emissions… View Summary +