New England energy future looks bright

WASHINGTON – If New England can avoid becoming too dependent on one energy source, it should be able to avoid the power problems plaguing California, according to business and legislative leaders who met Wednesday on Capitol Hill.

“We actually are in a pretty advantageous situation right now,” said U.S. Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., ranking member of the House Commerce Committee. “To the extent we act collectively, we will all benefit.”

Unlike California, New England states have seen several new power plants go on line. That’s good news for an expected high electricity demand this summer.

Stephen Whitley, vice president of ISO New England, a Massachusetts nonprofit group, said the region has a healthy diversity of energy sources.

The region’s top source is nuclear power, at 24 percent. Oil makes up 20 percent of New England’s supply, followed by natural gas, 16 percent, and coal at 13 percent, according to a study commissioned by ISO New England.

“There’s some really good things going on,” he said.

Reliance on natural gas, however, is expected to increase to 45 percent by 2005, Whitley said.

One solution is improving the infrastructure of oil delivery to the region, he said. Starting now will prevent problems in the future.

“There’s time to fix it before it hits you in the face,” he said.

California’s problems stem from a partial deregulation in 1996. The law capped prices for consumers but prohibited companies from securing long-term contracts from generators, leaving them open to market price spikes.

The state has been forced to conduct controlled blackouts to conserve energy.

The California crisis and energy issues were at the top of the agenda of Wednesday’s annual meeting of the New England Council, a regional business association.

Rhode Island and Massachusetts also deregulated, but did not stop utilities from signing contracts.

In Rhode Island, industrial consumers are feeling more of a pinch than residential customers. Large users over the past year have paid on average 30 percent more, according to the state Public Utilities Commission.

The region must continue to “work smarter, not harder,” Markey said. A bill he sponsored in 1987 required manufacturers to produce more energy efficient appliances.

On his next to last day in office in January, President Clinton issued an executive order mandating further appliance efficiency, Markey noted. President Bush, however, has halted implementation of that and other executive orders for 60 days.

Nationwide, the country is not as well off as New England, according to U.S. Sen. Frank Murkowski, R-Alaska, chairman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

“The message for you folks is beware,” he said. “The nation is producing insufficient energy, currently.”

U.S. dependency on foreign oil is too high, Murkowski said. During the energy crisis of the 1970s, the nation imported 37 percent of its oil. That’s up to 56 percent today, he said, and expected to climb to at least 60 percent by the end of the decade.

One solution, according to Bush, is drilling in the Alaska Natural Wildlife Refuge.