1.   Are mergers the answer to the coming challenges as many states deregulate and open their utilities to outside competitors?

2.   Are mergers the answer as many states prepare to give customers a choice in buying power and open their utilities to outside competitors?

3.   As a result, the companies have concentrated mostly on larger customers and mostly ignored residential customers in such states as California, which opened its utilities to competition.

4.   Both Britain and Australia have opened their utilities to competition.

5.   Enron is also on a drive to become a nationwide seller of electricity and natural gas to states like California as they open their utilities to competition.

6.   It has been disposing of its generating plants under a Massachusetts plan to open utilities to competition.

7.   Most states, however, are not yet ready to open their utilities to competitors.

8.   Other states are still deciding on ways to open utilities to competition.

9.   Several major states, including California and Pennsylvania, have begun opening their utilities to competition.

10.   Texas and Arkansas have already passed legislation opening electric utilities to competition, and some of the areas served by Entergy are among the poorest in the country.