The utility plans to retire its 358-megawatt Holly gas-fired power plant in 2007 and used the World Energy Exchange, an online auction platform, to find replacement supply for 2008-2010.

Historically, Austin Energy has used a paper-based request-for-proposal process to purchase electricity supply, which often required several months to complete. The time delay in this process has a negative effect in achieving a lower price because suppliers build in ‘risk premiums’ for potential changes in