Book Description

Two years of unprecedented big data analysis, by a team of researchers, looking at hundreds of millions of monthly electric bills and hundreds of thousands of power outage reports, have dramatically changed our understanding about how Americans really use electricity, what they actually pay for it, and how they value it. With these fresh perspectives, energy policy, strategy and regulation will never again be the same. Yet, "Lines Down" explores this new world of electricitynomics in a colorfully-illustrated, humorous and conversational format. From the ten hilarious New Yorker cartoons, to the six Reddy Kilowatt characters and Reddy's song, to the twenty-two vivid color graphs, to the evocative photos, to the stories of made-up weirdly-named utilities, this book cooks up a palatable plate for any reader, for veteran energy experts and novices alike. Even energy experts have been surprised by the book's analytic breakthroughs. For example: * Most US households pay less than the average electric bill, and many households pay much less than the average * Low-income households in particular tend to pay much less than the average for their electricity * Electricity sales growth is driven by household formation and business formation, and not by the electricity usage of existing homes and existing businesses * Multi-day power outages from storms, although rare, disproportionately cost utility customers * Investing in hardening against these storm outages has a disproportionate net value for the public with a minimum electric bill impact And much more. "Lines Down" yields new insights in every one of its 10 chapters. Part I of the book asks, provocatively, whether what you pay for electricity is a bad or good deal? In simple terms, are you getting value-for-money when paying your electric bills? Part II shows what Americans actually pay for electricity. The chapters here are full of surprises, defying conventional wisdom, that come from all the big data analysis. Part III shows how Americans actually use electricity. These chapters demonstrate how, to truly understand our relationship with electricity, one must fully appreciate how the statistical distributions of our usage are skewed (and not normally-distributed as has been assumed). Part IV shows how Americans actually value electricity. And how electric utilities and utility regulators have it within their abilities to significantly increase the electric grid's value. "Lines Down" throughout reflects on a glorious past, the Age of Electricity. But the book as well outlines an exciting future in which the Age of Electricity has its best days ahead.