September 6, 2011 

Mid-Atlantic and Northeast Utilities Struggle To Restore Power
as Another Storm Hits and

A combination of damaged bridges, flooded roads and fallen trees wreaked havoc for the 30,000 plus utility workers who were tasked with turning the lights back on from Virginia to Maine. The estimated insured losses will range between $3-billion and $7-billion. In an AOL Daily Finance article, it was estimated that the recovery from Irene could generate a stimulus effect of $20-billion over the next two years as home-owners and businesses rebuild. Foes of electricity infrastructure spending may be silenced by the obvious need to build a smarter and sturdier electric grid.

To further complicate matters, Tropical Storm Lee is slowly moving across the Mid-Atlantic States dumping additional precipitation into already swollen streams. Rainfall ranging from 4 to 10 inches is in the forecast for states along the Appalachians and into New England. (Source: Daily Finance)

Electricity Markets Remain Flat

The combination of flat demand due to outages kept electricity prices in the Northeast below the $50 per MWH level. The current cold wave will also keep the AC units quiet, which will dampen electricity demand across the US.

Natural Gas Futures Market

Natural gas prices remain at very attractive levels in the Northeast. CME-NYMEX natural gas futures market intraday prices for September 6, 2011 at 9:45 AM.
(Prices are USD per mmbtu)

Oct. - $3.875 +-$0.003
Nov. - $3.985 -$0.005
Dec. - $4.199 -$0.012
Jan. - $4.322 -$0.012
Feb. - $4.331 -$0.010
Mar. - $4.300 -$0.007

PMC 30-Day Natural Gas Futures Chart

Natural Gas Storage Increases by 55 BCF
Working gas in storage was 2,961 Bcf as of Friday, August 26, 2011, according to EIA estimates. This represents a net increase of 55 Bcf from the previous week. Stocks were 137 Bcf less than last year at this time and 60 Bcf below the 5-year average of 3,021 Bcf.

Crude Watch

Light Sweet Crude (WTI) is trading today on the CME/NYMEX market at $84.23, down $2.22 at 10:45 AM.

 OPEC Basket Data

Interesting Links and Resources

(Click on Links to View)

Edison Electric Institute President Praises Hurricane Irene's Mutual Response Effort 
(Edison Electric Institute)
As investor-owned utilities are attacked for poor disaster response, Edison Electric Institute president defends industry's efforts.

More Than A Week After Storm, Some Still Without Power  (NBC-NY)
Northeast finally recovering electricity, but many still 'power-less'.fi

First Solar Benefits from $89 Million US Ex-IM Loan for India Solar Plant   (Bloomberg.com)
The US solar industry has not fared well against China's well subsidized solar energy manufacturers. In a rare win, India's Reliance Energy opts to remain independent of China by choosing a US manufacturer.

Ethanol Proponents Fighting To Keep Subsidies  (WSJ- Environmental Capital)
The struggle to maintain funding for corn-fed ethanol plants is shifting into high gear.

Lighting Efficiency: Why You Need to Know About Haitz's Law

Now that we are seeing the ubiquitous LED flashlight on every Home Depot peg board, you might be wondering when will the LED approach the realm of affordability for businesses? The answer is contained in the Haitz Law, which predicts the development rate of LEDs in much the same way as Moore's Law predicted the development rate of micro-processors.

Dr. Roland Haitz of Agilent predicted that “every decade, the cost per lumen (unit of useful light emitted) falls by a factor of 10, the amount of light generated per LED package increases by a factor of 20, for a given wavelength (color) of light.” The formula has held true since it was proposed in 2000.

For some business applications, LED-lighting may already be viewed as cost effective, which is evident in the auto industry's use of LED's for brake and signal lights. But generally, LEDs are still a high-priced element of any lighting efficiency project, and are not often included in proposals due to ROI expectations. Since the Haitz Law is logarithmic, one could project that the cost-efficiency barrier for LEDs may be reached within four to five years. (Haitz Law, Original White Paper)

Weather Trends
The 6-10 Day National Weather Service's Forecast indicates cooler weather ahead from the Mississippi River to the Atlantic Coast.