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Pennsylvania PUC Proposes to Add Conditions in Granting Expansion of Supplier's License
March 30, 2012
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Copyright 2010-
The Pennsylvania PUC yesterday issued a tentative order which would approve an expansion of Major Energy Services, LLC's natural gas supplier license, but which would also impose certain reporting conditions on Major Energy under the expansion.
As first reported by Matters, Major Energy Services had applied to expand its license to include service to residential and all sizes of commercial customers at PECO, UGI Utilities, UGI Penn Natural Gas, and UGI Central Penn Gas. Major Energy Services had been previously licensed to serve such customers at Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania, Inc., and National Fuel Gas Distribution Corporation.
The PUC yesterday issued a tentative order that would approve the application for expanded authority, but which would also impose certain reporting conditions on Major Energy for a period of 18 months. The tentative order is not final and Major Energy has 10 days to file comments on the tentative order. A representative from Major Energy had not yet seen the order when contacted by Matters after hours concerning the order, and accordingly said that it would not be appropriate to comment prior to reviewing the order.
In its tentative order, the PUC said:
"Relating to Applicant's fitness, we are concerned about the number of informal complaints in 2010 and 2011 filed against Major Energy compared to other natural gas suppliers. Also, there has been at least one informal complaint filed against Major Energy in 2012. While not all of the complaints conclusively demonstrate compliance problems or inappropriate behavior, enough of them include allegations or other indicators of possible problems so as to cause concern. We are also concerned about the company's timeliness in responding to the Commission regarding the complaints. As a result, we intend to impose some additional conditions on Major Energy, particularly since Major Energy proposes to significantly expand its presence in Pennsylvania."
The PUC noted that it has previously mandated conditions for other electricity generation suppliers and natural gas suppliers seeking licenses, citing Just Energy Pennsylvania Corp. (JEP), at Docket Nos. A-2009-2098011 and A-2009-2097544.
Apart from the Just Energy case, the tentative order represents the second time in the past six months the PUC has sought to impose additional conditions on a supplier as a condition of licensing, though, in the other recent case, the PUC ultimately did not adopt any conditions (see discussion here)
Unlike with certain prior licensing orders, the specific conditions placed on Major Energy would be limited to additional reporting and complaint response time requirements, rather than any specifically enumerated marketing or contracting conditions (aside from a condition that Major Energy shall fully comply with the Commission's supplier marketing guidelines, as contained in the PUC Interim Guidelines on Marketing and Sales Practices for Electric Generation Suppliers and Natural Gas Suppliers, Docket No. M-2010-2185981).
Specifically, the PUC proposes the following conditions for Major Energy:
• In its response to the Commission's Bureau of Consumer Services (BCS) regarding a complaint alleging slamming, improper enrollment or deception, Major Energy shall provide BCS with copies of the documentation that Major Energy has supporting its position. The documentation can include written enrollment forms, disclosure statements, audio recordings, third party verification, marketing and sales materials and any other relevant documentation. Failure to provide documentation supporting an enrollment may result in a finding against Major Energy and possible referral to the Commission's office responsible for enforcement action.
• Major Energy shall provide a report the first week of each calendar quarter to staff capturing: (i) the complaints by category; (ii) the resolution for each complaint and (iii) any process improvements/changes, organizational changes, etc. implemented to reduce and/or eliminate similar complaints going forward;
• Major Energy shall provide a single point of contact for Commission staff for resolution of consumer inquiries and/or complaints received by BCS.
• Major Energy shall operate in accordance with BCS requirements for complaint management and handling. Notwithstanding the above:
• Major Energy shall send a written response, either via electronic mail, regular mail or by facsimile, to the BCS advocate assigned to mediate complaints filed against Major Energy, within 10 days of receipt of the complaint,
• Major Energy shall send a written response to the consumer who filed the complaint, within 10 days of receipt of the complaint,
• Major Energy shall respond to supplemental or new information referred by BCS, within 10 days of receipt of such information, and
• Major Energy shall provide final resolution in writing to BCS and notify the complaining consumer of same.
• Not less than sixty days before the expiration of the 18 month term of the conditions, Major Energy Services LLC shall file a status report with the Commission describing its compliance with the Public Utility Code, Commission Orders and Regulations, and the conditions listed above. A copy of this status report shall be provided to the Commission's Bureau of Technical Utility Services and the Commission's Bureau of Consumer Services.
Upon receipt of this status report, the Bureau of Technical Utility Services, with assistance from the Bureau of Consumer Services and the Law Bureau, shall prepare a Staff recommendation regarding appropriate license conditions, if any, after the expiration of the term.
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