Competition and the utility industry -- Who will survive?

Much has appeared in the business press recently about competition in the energy industry. Traditional utilities, for the most part, have accepted the emergence of competition, if not on the retail side, at least on the supply side. What does the future hold for traditional utilities and the independent power producers? Competition in the supply (wholesale) side of electrical power, a decade old, is here to stay. Many utilities now agree that cost savings have been realized through the competitive purchase of power. Competition will arrive in the near future to the retail side of the utility industry, ending geographic monopolies enjoyed by local utilities. Which utilities will be affected most by competition is now under debate. The answer to that question depends, in part, on whether retail side competition is controlled by state-initiation action or federal initiated action (such as took place in the natural gas, airline and telephone industries). Some generalizations are made and discussed.