The California Electricity Crisis

by James L. Sweeney

After political leaders mismanaged the electricity crisis, California now faces an electricity blight while it struggles to recover from its self-imposed wounds. The California Electricity Crisis focuses on policy decisions, their consequences, and alternatives: the saga California has faced and is still facing.

291 pages, Hardcover

First published September 11, 2008

Reviews

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary:
The California electricity crisis occurred against the backdrop of newly restructured electricity markets. Steadily increasing demand and flaws with the restructured wholesale markets led to high wholesale prices of electricity. The challenge turned to crisis when politicians failed to allow retail rate increases, pushing the three major investor owned utilities towards financial ruin. Unfortunately, the state decided to take on long-term obligations to purchase wholesale power and resell it to utilities -- these long-term contracts decimated the state budget and left the state saddled with the obligation to purchase electricity at inflated prices for years to come.

[Rebecca Lee · Rating 2 out of 5]

Highly and eerily relevant even after more than a decade.