AES Corporation is one of the world's largest independent electricity producers, with an ownership interest in 177 plants in Argentina, Australia, Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Hungary, India, Kazakhstan, the Netherlands, Mexico, Pakistan, Panama, the United Kingdom, Venezuela and the United States. The company supplies more than 59 gigawatts of electricity worldwide to 16 million customers through its electrical distribution network. The company's activities are grouped into four main business segments: contract generation; Competitive supply; Large users; and distribution of growth. The AES was the invention of Roger W. Sant and Dennis W. Bakke, who had served together in the Federal Energy Administration (FEA) during the Nixon and Ford administrations in the early to mid-1970s. The two had been instrumental in drafting preliminary versions of the Public Utilities Regulatory Policy Act (PURPA). The law was part of the federal government's attempt to address America's energy crisis, which, according to the prevailing view at the time, was caused largely by America's dependence on foreign oil. Seeking to reduce this dependence, PURPA mandated that utilities meet any needs they may have for new energy by seeking out qualified cogenerators and independent, small-scale, private-sector power producers. Along with this success, AES has carved out a reputation as one of the most socially conscious and organizationally innovative companies in the world. Such distinctions were a legacy of Sant and Bakke and a direct consequence of their backgrounds. Bakke was a devout Christian who readily recognized that his religious beliefs formed the basis of his worldview. Sant also grew up Christian, specifically Mormon, and was an ardent environmentalist. Furthermore, Bakke and Sant shared a common formative work experience in the federal bureaucracy, which inspired in them a deep and abiding distrust of centralized bureaucracies in both the public and private sectors. However, their youthful and idealistic desire to work for the government translated into a strong and lifelong commitment to public service. These principles and beliefs have made AES a rather unique company. Indeed, Bakke and Sant maintained that the company's primary goal was to build and cultivate a company that embodied their shared values, particularly integrity, fairness, fun, and social responsibility. In their opinion, a company that embodied these values ​​would most likely make money. For AES, however, profits were neither an end in themselves nor the primary reason for the company's existence. Rather, according to Bakke and Sant, money was the natural and inevitable byproduct of the company's shared values.