GLOSSARY
Aggregation—
The assembly of power from various sources for sale to retail customers.
Competition Transition Charge—
Under California's proposal for retail competition, a surcharge to be added to customers' electricity bills to allow for the recovery of ''stranded costs" (q. v.).
Energy Policy Act—
Act of Congress, passed in 1992, that, among other provisions, gives the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission authority to require transmission owners to open access to their systems to third party suppliers of energy.
Exempt wholesale generators—
Under the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (q. v.), nonutility owners of generation capacity that are qualified to sell in the wholesale power market.
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission—
The federal agency charged with regulating interstate commerce in electric power (both wholesale sales and mergers and acquisitions).
Independent Power Producer—
A generator not owned by a regulated utility. (See Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978.)
Independent System Operator—
Under the California plan for retail competition, an entity established to operate the transmission and distribution system, enforcing nondiscriminatory access to generators and buyers of power.
Load following—
The adjustment of power levels on a transmission grid to accommodate changing demands for power.
Pancaking—
The imposition of multiple charges for transmission of power through the service territories of several utilities, with each utility applying its own charge.
Public purpose programs—
Utility programs intended to serve the public interest, but not in the immediate interest of the utilities. Examples include research and development, rate assistance to low income customers, and energy efficiency improvements for customers.
Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA)—
Act of Congress passed in 1978 that, among other provisions, requires electric utilities to buy power from independent generators, at prices representing the utilities' "avoided costs" of adding the corresponding amounts of generation.
Qualified facility—
Generating facilities that are independently owned and sell power to utilities under contracts based on fuel price forecasts in the past.
Reserve generating capacity—
Generating capacity held off line to meet peaks in demand and/or to supply power during scheduled or unscheduled outages of generation.
Real-time pricing—
The pricing of power to reflect the variation of the cost of generation over time.
Stranded costs—
The embedded costs of generating capacity that would be rendered uneconomic by market competition in generation.
Unbundle—
To divide into separate commodities the products and services now provided by vertically integrated utilities. Under FERC Orders 888 and
889, public utilities must file tariffs providing nondiscriminatory transmission access to all wholesale users. Several states are considering unbundling retail services as well.
Wheeling—
The transmission of power from one utility's territory to another's, often for sale to a customer by a third party.