The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission has authorized PG Energy Inc. to implement several tariff modifications
regarding balancing charges and transportation service requirements.
It permitted the LDC to impose a balancing charge of $0.66/Decatherm per unit of imbalance on transportation customers and aggregators whose actual daily deliveries of gas vary by more than 2.5 percent of requirements. The commission rejected a proposal to reduce the balancing charge to account for the offsetting nature of usage among transportation users as a whole. The commission found that it would be unfair to sales customers to allow transportation customers who are not in balance to avoid paying the balancing rate. Sales customers pay all of the costs of balancing and are compensated only when charges are imposed on transportation users.
The fact that individual imbalances may occur to offset each other on a given day does not mean that balancing costs are not incurred, the commission explained. It also authorized the LDC to combine a daily balancing service with its existing monthly balancing offering. In approving the plan the commission noted that the utility had made a commitment to provide an integrated electronic bulletin board in operation to provide customers with the real-time usage information required for proper customer notice when daily balancing targets are involved. PGE Industrial Intervenors v. PG Energy, Inc., R-00963612C0007, Feb. 24, 1997 (Pa.P.U.C.). Et
Phillip S. Cross is an associate legal editor of PUBLIC UTILITIES FORTNIGHTLY.