disgustingly offtopic: energy shopping

[Tim Writer]

Christopher Browne <cbbrowne-Re5JQEeQqe8AvxtiuMwx3w at public.gmane.org> writes:

> On 19 Jan 2006 17:48:02 -0500, Tim Writer <tim-s/rLXaiAEBtBDgjK7y7TUQ at public.gmane.org> wrote:
> > Scott Elcomb <psema4-Re5JQEeQqe8AvxtiuMwx3w at public.gmane.org> writes:
> >
> > > On 1/19/06, William Park <opengeometry-FFYn/CNdgSA at public.gmane.org> wrote:
> > > > On Thu, Jan 19, 2006 at 01:47:12PM -0500, Evan Leibovitch wrote:
> > > > > William Park wrote:
> > > > But, they represent another "middleman" in all this.  So, My question is,
> > > >     - why would it be cheaper for me to have one more "middlemen"?
> > >
> > > Because it's the value of a supply-chain.
> > >
> > > A middleman can be cumbersome, especially within a business.  But on
> > > the outside, it empowers B2B (bussiness-to-business) opportunities.
> >
> > That's pretty vague. As it was explained to me at the door, by entering into
> > a fixed price contract, you allow energy suppliers (the middlemen) to buy
> > energy resources in bulk. By making an up front committment, you make it
> > easier for them (and their suppliers) to manage their supply which helps them
> > to negotiate a better price (on behalf of a large group of consumers).
> 
> But this doesn't explain why it is beneficial to get an extra
> middlecritter in between you and OPG, who are probably the same people
> that were providing the power both before and after the transaction.
> 
> It may be that this was initiated during the last Ontario Conservative
> government, where they might have billed the merits as being that this
> is all about "increasing competition."  Which is so much nonsense if
> you don't actually get to deal with a multiplicity of actual
> suppliers...  Having *actual* competition has some merit, but this is
> merely a chimera of competition...

Agree about the politics but I was referring to gas. In that case, as I
understand it and I could well be wrong, the middlemen buy from the large
energy producers and arrange for (or buy) distribution to your home through
the local monopoly (Enbridge). Since there are multiple natural gas
producers, this does offer the consumer a measure of competition without
requiring multiple gas lines to everyone's house.

-- 
tim writer <tim-s/rLXaiAEBtBDgjK7y7TUQ at public.gmane.org>                                  starnix inc.
647.722.5301                                      toronto, ontario, canada
http://www.starnix.com              professional linux services & products
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