A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Acquisition Costs - Direct costs and indirect costs incurred to acquire legal rights to wasting natural resources. Direct costs include costs incurred to obtain options to lease or purchase mineral rights and costs incurred for the actual leasing (e.g., lease bonuses) or purchasing of the rights. Indirect costs include such costs as: brokers' commissions and expenses; abstract and recording fees; filing and patenting fees; and costs of legal examination of title and documents.

Acreage - An area, measured in acres, that is subject to ownership or control by those holding total or fractional shares of working interests. Acreage is considered developed when development has been completed. (See definition for Working Interest.) A distinction may be made between 'gross' acreage and 'net' acreage: Gross. All acreage covered by any working interest, regardless of the percentage of ownership in the interest. Net. Gross acreage adjusted to reflect the percentage of ownership in the working interest in the acreage.

Affiliate - An 'affiliate' of, or a person 'affiliated' with, a specific person is a person that directly, or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, controls, or is controlled by, or is under common control with, the person specified. The term 'affiliate' includes any subsidiary or parent of the person specified.

Aggregator - Entity responsible for all aspects of energy delivery from its own portfolio of buyers and sellers. Aggregators gather customers or generators to buy/sell bulk power, making a profit on the transaction.

Alternative Energy Source - Refer to Renewable Energy.

Amortization - The depreciation, depletion, or charge-off to expense of intangible and tangible assets over a period of time.

ASHRAE - Acronym for American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers.

Average Cost - Utility revenue divided by utility sales. Average cost typically includes the costs of existing power plants, transmission and distribution lines, and any additional facilities used by the utility in behalf of the customer.