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Incisive commentary from RAP experts
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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December 11, 2018
EVs’ Rise Doesn’t Need to be Auto Dealers’ Demise
Some argue that the growth of electric vehicles will be the end of auto dealerships. Car dealers today derive significant revenues by providing parts and service for the internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles they sell. If EVs, with their… View Summary +
November 13, 2018
Back to the future: A strong electric vehicle benchmark can cut transport emissions and help modernise Europe’s electricity grid
Over a century ago, electric vehicles (EVs) were the best-selling cars on the market. In 1900, 28 percent of cars on the road in the U.S. were electric. If the competing combustion engine technology had not taken over, today’s policymakers would likely face a… View Summary +
November 1, 2018
Britain’s capacity market: What Europe can learn
- Philip Baker
The U.K.’s marketwide capacity mechanism for electricity provides a solution to a supply problem that has yet to emerge, writes Phil Baker. A targeted strategic reserve is likely to be a more cost-reflective alternative, he argues. In 2014 Great… View Summary +
October 27, 2018
Building efficiency is crucial to a fair energy transition
- Jan Rosenow ,
- Sibyl Steuwer
When we think of the complex transition to clean energy, we often think in terms of broad “how” questions. One question rightfully gaining increasing attention across the EU is how to address energy poverty as part of the clean energy… View Summary +
October 18, 2018
Smart Grid and Community Benefits—with No Rate Increase? How Burbank Made it Happen
- Jim Lazar
Burbank Water and Power (BWP) is a 50,000-customer, community-owned municipal utility in the Los Angeles area. BWP has implemented an advanced smart grid network, and did so with no rate increase to consumers. How did they do this?… View Summary +
October 8, 2018
Timing Is Everything: How Smart Rate Design Helps Make Electrification Beneficial
In talking about beneficial electrification, we have emphasized the benefits of various kinds of flexibility. For example, loads that can be scheduled at different times of day without too much inconvenience to the user can be beneficial, because they can… View Summary +
September 28, 2018
Karnataka’s power sector: History, politics of development have consequences
- Meera Sudhakar
When Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy announced crop loan waivers in his first budget after he came to power in May this year, there was widespread concern about how the state would finance these. Many who thought the loan waiver was… View Summary +
September 25, 2018
Purple Haze, or Purple Mountain Majesties? How Energy Efficiency Can Reduce Regional Haze
Tourists visit our national parks to see the majestic vistas, not haze-obscured views. The two images of the Grand Canyon below illustrate this point: In the view on the left, one can see for more than 200 miles, while on… View Summary +
September 19, 2018
A Tale of Two Reforms: The Power Sector in Andhra Pradesh
- Ashwini K. Swain
Andhra Pradesh’s power sector is going through a second phase of reforms. The first (1999-2004) was widely seen as focused on privatization of electricity distribution; this time the goal is to ensure affordable and reliable power supply for all. To… View Summary +
September 18, 2018
A Window for Power Sector Transformation in Uttar Pradesh
- Jonathan Balls
A rare window is open for power sector reform in Uttar Pradesh. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), in office in both Lucknow and New Delhi, has a sweeping mandate to transform Uttar Pradesh’s troubled electricity situation. The party has made… View Summary +