Full operation began only in 1986, almost adecade after the Department's initial intent toapprove.

MATEP's delayed construction and operation madethe plant cost six or seven times what Harvardexpected, Coolidge professor of History David S.Landes says.

Today, some at Harvard question whether theUniversity should be in the power business.

Yeaple acknowledges their concerns, but saysthat MATEP is a more reliable source of powerthan a publicly-owned utility.

MATEP has provided uninterrupted electricservice for at least four years, Yeaple says.

As the CMC promotional video says, if the powergoes out in an operating room or intensive careward, the consequences would be dire.

CMC employees take pride in the service theyprovide, and say that they think about the peopleat the hospitals they are providing electricity,chilled water and steam for.

"We have to remember that we're helping people,not just buildings," says Judith R. Della Barba,manager of administration.

Along with providing reliable service, CMC isable to charge Boston Edison's rates because it isgiven a large discount on the fuel it buys.

The University can use MATEP'S profits forother projects or can repay MATEP's debt, whichnow stands at $100 million, a MATEP official said.

Although MATEP does profit about $10 million ayear, it will still take many years for CMC to payoff its accumulated debt and fund all its capitalprojects.

MATEP's board of directors has seven members,all Harvard-affiliated, including Yeaple, VicePresident for Administration Sally N. Zeckhauser,Vice President of Finance Alan J. Proctor '74 andVice President and General Counsel Margaret H.Marshall.

In the Energy Business ?

The board, which meets once a year, has notrecently discussed whether Harvard should be inthe energy business, but Yeaple says that it maydo so at its next meeting, due to the recentcontroversy over MATEP brought up by Landes atmeetings of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences.

Landes had charged that the University'sCentral Administration decided to build MATEPwithout consulting FAS professors, and that theresulting plant was a $500 million fiasco.