Castlebridge Energy Seeks Show Cause Order Over Delay in Supplier Testing at BGE

Castlebridge Energy Group, LLC requested that the Maryland PSC order Baltimore Gas & Electric to show cause why a delay in testing new gas suppliers' communication with BGE via Extensible Markup Language (XML), which is a pre-requisite to serve customers, is not unreasonable.

Castlebridge also requested that the matter be docketed for a Commission administrative meeting as soon as possible.

Castlebridge, which is an active electric supplier in Maryland, received its Maryland gas supplier license on August 24. Castlebridge submitted a registration package to serve gas customers at BGE on September 30.

Castlebridge was informed that the final step for certification on BGE's system, XML testing, could not be completed until at least late spring of 2012.

"Even then, only two suppliers would be tested at a time, and the next slots will not be available until next fall," Castlebridge said.

A supplier may not serve customers until XML testing is complete.

"Castlebridge has approached BGE on several occasions to ask whether anything could be done to shorten the delay, but [has] ultimately received no definitive commitment that any testing would begin earlier, and, in fact, that the late spring date was not firm and subject to BGE resource availability."

Castlebridge's understanding is that the testing delay, "is not owing to some technical impossibility but solely by an alleged lack of resources allocated by BGE."

While Castlebridge said that it understands there is usually a delay in market entry of a month or two to permit testing, "more than half a year is not reasonable."