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In my testimony I will respond first to the specific 



questions that you ask in your letter of June 23, 1993. 



Following that, I will discuss the natural gas industry in the 



Pacific Northwest generally, and comment upon the increasing need 



for natural gas and electric utilities to work together in 



planning future regional energy delivery. 



The responses to your specific questions are predicated on 



the premise that it is more efficient to use natural gas directly 



for heating in homes, businesses, and industries than it is to 



use natural gas to generate electricity in combustion turbines. 



Included in my testimony are two charts entitled, "Total Energy 



Trajectories," that illustrate the efficiencies of the direct use 



of natural gas vs. combined cycle combustion turbine electric 



generation. One chart deals with the overall efficiency of 



residential space heating by direct use of natural gas compared 



with natural gas-fired electric generation. The other deals with 



water heating on a similar basis. The charts demonstrate, 



principally because of the relatively low efficiency of the 



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