Energy Choice
                            

Matters

RESA Petitions Long Island Power Authority to Review, Enhance Electric Choice Program

January 6, 2015

Email This Story
Copyright 2010-15 EnergyChoiceMatters.com
Reporting by Karen Abbott • kabbott@energychoicematters.com

The Retail Energy Supply Association has petitioned the Long Island Power Authority to institute a public examination and review of the existing LI Choice Program, "with the goal of identifying and implementing revisions and enhancements to the Program that will provide consumers with a meaningful and robust retail energy market and competitive choice."

RESA has sought improvements for the "moribund" LIPA choice program previously at the PSC, including in October 2014 (click here) and also 2012 (click here).

RESA said that the following should be evaluated for modifications to LIPA's electric commodity cost pricing mechanism:

• Revise the current commodity pricing structure to allow for reflection of current commodity costs and eliminate the use of credits and outdated costs and calculations

• Full inclusion of all cost components of commodity supply;

• Unbundling

• Cost allocation, and

• Capacity access

Regarding capacity access, RESA said, "LIPA operates in a load pocket area that experiences various transmission constraints. In this environment, LIPA should consider allowing for equitable access by ESCOs to the limited in pocket capacity assets, and develop a transparent and accurate process to bill for such assets."

With respect to the LIPA's retail access infrastructure, RESA said that the following market enabling measures should be evaluated for integration into the program:

• Consumer Outreach & Education;

• Retail Billing Options;

• Purchase of Receivables Billing (non-resource) Option,

• Timely Access to Customer Usage Information, and

• Electronic Data Interchange

"Currently, based on the LIPA website there are only seven ESCOs authorized to operate in LIPA and it is our understanding that there has been a relatively insignificant level of migration of load to independent ESCOs. And with respect to small customers, retail access is basically non-existent. Thus, in more than 15 years there has been virtually no progress in bringing retail access to the LIPA consumer," RESA said.

As of June 2014, approximately 56.1% of the total electric load throughout New York State outside of LIPA has migrated to ESCOs

"[T]he more than 1.1 million customers located in the LIPA service territory represent a tremendous market opportunity for the ESCO community. And many of these customers already take gas supply service from an ESCO," RESA said.

ADVERTISEMENT
NEW Jobs on RetailEnergyJobs.com:
• NEW! -- Digital Marketing Manager -- Retail Supplier
• NEW! -- Director, Business Development Power & Gas -- Retail Supplier
• NEW! -- Business Development Manager -- Retail Supplier -- Houston/DFW
• NEW! -- Energy Advisor
• NEW! -- Manager-Retail Key Account Sales -- Retail Supplier
• NEW! -- Energy Advisor -- DFW
• NEW! -- Business Development Director
• NEW! -- Scheduling/Business Analyst -- Retail Provider
• NEW! -- Staff Accountant -- Retail Provider -- Houston
• NEW! -- Regional Sales Manager -- Retail Provider -- PA/IL/New England/Texas
• Sr. Pricing Analyst -- Retail Provider -- Houston
• Senior Energy Markets Pricing Analyst
• Energy Markets Analyst
• Utility Rules Analyst -- Retail Supplier