Big USA Today Story Notes That Energy Conservation Is A Good Idea

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Nearly all businesses share an all-consuming mission: sell, sell, sell. McDonald's wants to peddle more hamburgers. Airlines strive to fill every seat. Phone companies want you to make more calls. But power companies these days are increasingly being told by regulators to pump hundreds of millions of dollars into selling less electricity.

Energy-efficiency programs, which first caught fire in the 1970s before fading in recent years, are making a big comeback spurred by global-warming fears and the public's aversion to more pollution-belching power plants. At least 15 states are starting or considering new or expanded rebate and tax-incentive programs. The campaigns entice consumers to buy compact fluorescent light bulbs and energy-saving dishwashers and coax businesses to replace power-guzzling freezers and lighting systems.

To prod utilities into better promoting or funding the initiatives, many states are carving out new financial inducements that turn the industry's 125-year-old business model on its head: In some cases, companies could make just as much money by selling less power. "What (they're) asking us to do is cannibalize sales," says Trevor Lauer, vice president of retail sales for DTE Energy in Detroit, noting that DTE supports energy efficiency, especially if the company earns a sufficient financial return. "Our job is to sell as many kilowatt hours as we can."

States and cities are also beefing up building codes to require added insulation and more efficient heating systems in new homes and businesses. Wal-Mart last month announced a campaign to sell 100 million compact fluorescent bulbs by the end of 2007. The goal, if reached, would save $3 billion in electrical costs and keep 20 million tons of greenhouse gases from spewing out of power plants.
"It's pretty much understood that electricity as a growth industry is a dangerous thing," says California Energy Commissioner Art Rosenfeld, who is considered a pioneering advocate of energy efficiency. Utilities are spending nearly $1.9 billion on energy-saving programs this year, up from $1.6 billion in 2005 and nearly double the 1999 total, says the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, a non-profit group that is independent of the utility industry.

EDIT

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/energy/2006-12-27-energy-cover-usat_x.htm

ED. - So, the industry as a whole is increasing spending on conservation and efficiency by $300 million this year, which is, what, the equivalent of one smallish pulverized coal plant? And how many pulverized coal plants are now on the drawing boards or being built in the US? Oh, about 150 last time I looked.