Con Edison Electric T&D Rates Frozen through 2016

Our colleagues at the NYECC, who were essential to the negotiations with the Public Service Commission and Con Edison on the electric rate increase proposals, reported June 18 on the following results regarding the performance-based credit for standby customers. The text below is reproduced directly from the NYECC’s June 18 bulletin on the rate resolution.

Background/Details

On Jan. 30 of this year, Con Edison filed for an electric rate increase ($368.1M revenue increase) to become effective Jan. 1, 2016.

After the rate case filing, the Department of Public Service Staff, Con Edison, the NYECC and other parties participated in confidential settlement negotiations. A 2015 Joint Proposal to extend the current two-year electric rate plan by one year (through Dec. 31, 2016) was filed on April 20, 2015. An Addendum to the Joint Proposal was filed on June 2, 2015 regarding the performance-based credit for standby customers.

The Terms

Con Edison’s Electric T&D rates will be "frozen" through 2016. (Note: steam and natural gas rates were frozen in 2014 for three years.)

• Con Edison originally requested $368.1M for 2016. The PSC in its 2014 Rate Order had previously approved a $47.776M increase that was scheduled to go into effect in 2016 under the current electric rate plan, so electric ratepayers were facing a total proposed revenue requirement increase of $415.9M.
  
  
• Under the 2015 Joint Proposal, the revenue requirement increase will be $122.633M (an incremental revenue requirement increase of $74.857M plus the $47.776M increase agreed to under the 2014 electric rate plan). The $122.633M increase in the revenue requirement will be offset by available customer credits in that amount so that rates may remain flat ($92.6M in customer credits plus $30M previously ordered by the Commission in its 2014 Order).
  
  

Standby Rates Concessions

• Assessment of the MAC to standby customers will change from three components (customer charge, contract demand charge, and as-used daily demand charges) to a single per-kWh MAC charge applicable to standby customers and all other customers taking service under the electric tariff.
  
  
• The calculation of per-kWh charges such as SBC/RPS and MAC for offset standby customers will change from a customer’s total kWh usage to the customer’s total usage net of kWh produced by the customer’s generating facility.
  
  
• There will be the opportunity to earn a performance based credit (to be determined each year in October), available for Standby Service customers to earn credits against their contract demand charges for Con Ed and NYPA customers with generating facilities at a voltage lower than 100kV.
  
  
• Generator output must be separately metered using interval metering with telecommunications capability arranged and installed at customer’s expense. The customer must also provide and maintain the communications service for the meters recording the generator output. Due to the limited time before the start of the 2015 measurement period, which commences on June 15, 2015, in which to install approved metering and communications for standby performance credits, the Company proposed a modification to the method of measuring performance to allow standby customers the opportunity to earn credits against their contract demand charges in 2015. The modification allows customers to participate and earn performance credits in 2015 by using their existing metering, subject to certain conditions, while working at the same time with the Company to assess their current generating facility metering equipment for more permanent metering and communication with Con Edison, as specified in the Joint Proposal, to be installed and operational prior to the start of the 2016 measurement period.
  
  
• The credit will be equal to the product of: (a) the lesser of the lowest kW recorded on the output meter in the weekday period from June 15 through Sept. 15 from 10 am to 10 pm, or the customer’s Contract Demand, multiplied by the Contract Demand Delivery Charge per kW in effect on Oct. 1 the year it is determined to be paid. The measurement period for the second and subsequent years will cover two consecutive full summer periods adjusted for any outage events. The customer will receive the credit monthly over the course of one year, commencing in November until the following October.
  
  
• "No fault" outages – the measurement period will exclude up to three outage events (regardless of cause) not exceeding five 24-hour weekday periods and the customer can still qualify for the credit.
  
  
• The customer must request the performance based credit by Oct. 1 of each year and, at the same time, specify the outage events the customer requests to be excluded from the measurement period.

If you would like more information or a copy of the Joint Proposal, please reach out to the NYECC’s Executive Director Diana Sweeney at diana.sweeney@nyecc.com, or 212-616-5118.

BOMA/NY
http://www.bomany.org/