Settlement to End Shopping Black-Out Dates, Set POR Discount & Bypassable Procurement Charge at Pennsylvania Utility

A settlement in Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania's rate case would end the current "freeze" periods for choice enrollments, adopt a new bypassable gas procurement charge, and establish new POR discount rates.

The settlement would unbundle certain costs related to the procurement of default supply into a new bypassable gas procurement charge (GPC) equal to $0.0535 per Dth ($0.00535 per therm).

This is about four times higher than the level of the GPC initially proposed by Columbia of $0.0137 per Dth.

The settlement would also establish Merchant Function Charges of 1.7% for residential customers and 0.8% for non-residential customers, reflecting uncollectibles. These class-specific percentages would also be used as the new discount rates for the purchase of receivables program.

Furthermore, the settlement provides that no later than April 1, 2015, Columbia will eliminate its freeze period for choice enrollments, and thereby will process enrollment and drop transactions each processing day. As part of this change, Columbia will, as of the fifteenth day of each month, or the prior business day if the fifteenth falls on a non-business day, take a snap-shot of choice enrollment to develop the Daily Delivery Requirements and determine capacity assignment levels for the upcoming calendar month.

Columbia also agrees to engage in a collaborative with the natural gas suppliers to discuss ways to potentially further improve the competitiveness of the retail market. The collaborative will meet no less than quarterly for a one-year period following the Commission's approval of the settlement.

The settlement was signed by the PUC's Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement, Office of Consumer Advocate, Office of Small Business Advocate, several retail natural gas suppliers, and additional parties.

R-2012-2321748