Author Biography: CHARLES BAUDO Charles is a retired electrical engineer/utility economist with children, step-children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. His long career included work in many areas of the United States and eight other countries: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras, Iran, Mexico, Myanmar, Nepal and the Philippines. He lives in Central Arizona with his wife, Elsa, a native of Mexico.
Book Sample Contents: GAINING EXPERIENCE:
RFL. Although obvious in 1959 that the transistor was a great advancement, engineers had only a cloudy view of its future. RFL. ... it immersed me into the worldwide changeover from tube-type electronics to transistors, a fortuitous experience that would pay off for many years. RFL. My job worries were overcome eventually by intensive study, curiosity about everything made by the company and very talented and understanding bosses. RFL/SRP ... another part of the engineering profession―keeping up with technical advances throughout the country and the world. SRP. If I had stayed in New Jersey, it's unlikely that I would have earned a professional engineer's license, received a Master's in business, or learned Spanish.
CONSULTING WORK: COSTA RICA. Although the generation cooperative would sell only a tiny fraction of the country's needs to ICE, that small amount became the basis of opening Costa Rica to new sources of electricity, hydro and others, and new forms of financing. IRAN. The consortium's huge expatriate organization superimposed itself on Iran's urban and rural cultures, forcing lots of interaction and confusion. It was never dull. NEPAL. Gradually, the true situation our team faced revealed itself. NEPAL. ... knowing more now about the country's political system, my suggestion could have been politically incorrect, even radical. GEORGIA. ... This work required virtually all my education and experience in engineering and business.
Myanmar and several international energy companies, including Exxon-Mobil, agreed that a large supply of gas lay offshore, under the Andaman Sea south of Yangon. Unfortunately, no agreement existed on how to pay the drilling companies for their work. One method would be for Myanmar to pay a royalty for each thousand cubic feet of gas provided. The royalty compensates the driller for building the rigs and pipelines needed, plus their risk, plus their operating costs. The new military government was just beginning to learn about international contracts for oil and gas supplies. They could benefit from external consultants plus advice from friendly neighbors who had already gone through fuel pricing negotiations. On the surface of the conflict, the junta believed that the drillers of the world expected too much profit for their work while the drillers refused to provide their money and expertise without an adequate profit. Below the surface lurked the low electric prices. Raising prices might lead to public unrest. Not raising prices meant taking money from another part of the economy to finance electric production. That is, improving the supply of electricity could take money from schools or government salaries.
Although the stories told mainly address U.S. and overseas utilities, this book should apply in general to many technical careers.
