Opinion ID: 160953
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Competition in the Unregulated Cooling Market

Text: 22 Trigen contends that OG&E is not entitled to state action immunity because OG&E is not participating in the regulated electricity market but in the unregulated cooling services market. We disagree. First, OG&E is selling only one thingelectricity at state-regulated rates. It does not sell the electric chillers that are necessary for cooling. According to Trigen's logic, OG&E must be deemed a competitor, and a potential monopolist, in every single product market that uses electricity to the exclusion of the suppliers of that market. Clearly, this is an unreasonable result. 23 Second, the case Trigen relies on, Cantor v. Detroit Edison Co., 428 U.S. 579 (1976), is distinguishable. In Cantor, the Court held that a Michigan electric utility's program distributing free light bulbs was not immune from the Sherman Act, even though the light-bulb-distribution program was included in the state-approved tariff, because there was no evidence that the state intended to regulate the electric light bulb market. Id. at 598. Cantor involved an electric utility that was distributing an unregulated productlight bulbs. OG&E has done no such thing. OG&E only sells electricityat state-regulated rates. 1