21.   Alioto said the city might save millions of dollars a year by bypassing the utility and buying power directly on the wholesale market.

22.   All regional electricity distributors buy power from the generating companies through a special pool that serves as a market or wholesaler.

23.   --Allow manufacturers to bypass local utilities and buy power from the lowest cost source.

24.   But during that same period, wages for middle-income workers declined, leaving many families with less buying power than before.

25.   But state officials said they believed they had rounded up enough electricity to squeak through the day without new blackouts, in part by buying hydroelectric power from Canada.

26.   But only certain sectors of the industry are very likely to reap the benefits of a public flush with buying power.

27.   But the impact on rates is high because those contracts force it to buy power at roughly twice what it could pay through other means.

28.   Buying the power is only part of the job.

29.   California buys power on the spot market.

30.   Con Edison was working hard but operating comfortably, keeping up with demand by buying some power on the spot market.