Nationally, energy theft results in financial losses second only to auto theft, coming in at $6 billion annually. Also, it's estimated that most utilities lose 1 percent to 3 percent of revenue annually because of theft. At Austin Energy, a 1 percent loss of revenue could add up to $9 million. That's $9 million the utility would pass on to their rate payers. So, at Austin Energy they take energy theft seriously. And in an industry where many utilities do nothing to battle energy theft, Austin Energy is taking the fight to the thieves. On this episode of Currents: The Energy News Podcast we go down to Austin and learn everything we can about Austin Energy's revenue protection program.

The power industry is facing some big challenges. Rising demand. Aging infrastructure. Climate change. The list goes on, and there's no silver bullet solution. But there is something that has the potential to help greatly with these challenges. It's the smart grid, and it isn't just marketing buzz. We're actually seeing real-world implementation of smart grid technologies and starting to realize some of the benefits the smart grid can provide. That was the prevailing sentiment at the 2008 DistribuTECH Conference and Exhibition. On this episode of Currents: The Energy News Podcast, Steve Brown, chief editor of Utility Automation & Engineering T&D magazine and DistribuTECH Conference program chair, offers a report from DTECH's keynote session, where president and CEO of PNM Resources and chairman of EEI Jeff Sterba, former U.S. Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham, and division vice president of regulated operations technology at CenterPoint Energy Don Cortez gave their perspectives on how new technology can help solve the myriad challenges facing the power industry.

A secret experiment called "Aurora" demonstrated how a power plant's control system could be hacked and a generator destroyed. A video of the attacked generator was released by DHS and it got people scared. The media started imagining end-of-the-world scenarios resulting from a cyber attack on the grid. The House Committee on Homeland Security held hearings in October to investigate the grid's vulnerabilities. With all that noise, it's hard to tell how serious the cyber threat to utilities is. We have one question: Is the sky really falling? On this episode of Currents: The Energy News Podcast we present two different perspectives on the answer to that question.

As is often the case in the U.S., innovation begins on the West Coast and spreads throughout the country. It?s no different with advanced metering. In this episode of Currents, we speak with representatives from Pacific Gas & Electric and Southern California Edison about their massive advanced metering rollouts. They tell us about the benefits they expect to receive from smart metering, and about the lessons they?ve learned along the way. Also, in our Last Word segment, the incoming president of AMRA gives us a sneak preview of the upcoming Autovation conference in Reno.

At every industry event lately, there's been one thing that's generated a lot of hype. That thing is the plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, or PHEV. Studies have shown PHEVs could have a positive impact on greenhouse gas emissions and they could also have a positive impact on a utility's bottom line. On this episode of Currents: The Energy News Podcast we take a look at PHEVs: what they are, their potential, the benefits to the utility industry, and some of the exciting programs and technologies already here that could change the transportation and utility industries.

With the announcement of a $45 billion buyout of TXU Corp., the Lone Star State is living up to its reputation of doing everything "big." But the TXU buyout isn't the only big news with big money attached to it in Texas. In this episode of Currents: The Energy News Podcast, Everything's Bigger in Texas, we take a look at the TXU deal and two multi-billion-dollar wind energy-related transmission proposals in Texas.