This podcast is a father/son team that explains and demystifies energy concepts behind current events involving the energy industry and with a focus on the transition to green energy. Father Vikram Rao is an energy industry veteran, retiring as the Chief Technology Officer of Halliburton and holding a Ph.D. in Engineering from Stanford. Son Justin Rao serves as the host and brings with in an expertise in economics, holding a Ph.D. from UC San Diego.
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This podcast is a father/son team that explains and demystifies energy concepts behind current events involving the energy industry and with a focus on the transition to green energy. Father Vikram Rao is an energy industry veteran, retiring as the Chief Technology Officer of Halliburton and holding a Ph.D. in Engineering from Stanford. Son Justin Rao serves as the host and brings with in an expertise in economics, holding a Ph.D. from UC San Diego.
Episode 7: Smart regulation in electricity markets, why the "deregulation vs. regulation" misses the point
Energy Explained
19 minutes 54 seconds
4 years ago
Episode 7: Smart regulation in electricity markets, why the "deregulation vs. regulation" misses the point
In this addition to our channel, we flip the roles to discuss the "deregulation vs. regulation" debate for electricity markets. In our last episode, we discussed how the Texas blackout crisis was caused primarily by natural gas not reaching power plants. We concluded that the fact that Texas is on an independent grid from the rest of the country was a contributing factor, but ultimately not the root cause. But in the media, we've seen articles "blaming" deregulation for the crisis and a renewed debate on the topic.
In this video, Justin, who holds a PhD economics, explains that nearly ALL markets are regulated in some fashion. Markets are operated based on rules that govern trade and set out the responsibilities of all parties involved. Sensibly constructed rules lead to well-functioning markets, bad rules lead to a host of issues such as huge price fluctuations, supply shortages, supply excess/spoilage and fraud.
Justin explains that allowing consumer prices to fluctuate 100x the base price is simply a flawed market rule. Dynamic prices are designed to generate supply responses, at higher prices more methods of production become profitable, and these should "come online". Prices should be allowed to fluctuate in the range "that creates a meaningful response." In crisis periods where supply cannot respond (e.g. because all the power plants do not have enough fuel), prices should remain essentially fixed. Tune in to hear more.
Energy Explained
This podcast is a father/son team that explains and demystifies energy concepts behind current events involving the energy industry and with a focus on the transition to green energy. Father Vikram Rao is an energy industry veteran, retiring as the Chief Technology Officer of Halliburton and holding a Ph.D. in Engineering from Stanford. Son Justin Rao serves as the host and brings with in an expertise in economics, holding a Ph.D. from UC San Diego.