However, construction of new power plants is costly and takes several years. Many planned nuclear power plants in the United States have been canceled because of soaring construction costs as well as safety concerns. The supply of fossil fuels will eventually run out unless economical substitutes can be developed for them. Many scientists believe that energy from the earth, sun, wind, and oceans can be used more extensively to produce electric power economically in the future. Some utilities have already begun to use solar, geothermal, tidal, or wind power in addition to regular energy sources to generate electricity.
Electric utilities rely increasingly on computerized control systems.
The use of such systems and the widespread interconnection of power lines among electric companies enable the utilities to provide extremely reliable service. M. E. El-Hawary, Ph.D., Professor of Electrical Engineering, Technical Univ. of Nova Scotia. How to cite this article.