Edison Fees [RE-wrenches]

[Joel Davidson]

Hello Pat,
I thought I'd post the good news to your December 30, 2002 "early warning"
along with my sincere thanks to everyone who fought against exit fees.
Best regards,
Joel Davidson

April 3, 2003       Docket #: R.02-01-011
Media Contact:  PUC Press Office, 415.703.1366, news at cpuc.ca.gov
PUC SETS COSTS FOR SELF-GENERATION ENERGY
CUSTOMERS, PROVIDING EXCEPTIONS TO PROMOTE
CLEAN ALTERNATIVE POWER

The California Public Utilities Commission (PUC) today approved a
decision exempting many types of small, renewable, and clean
self-generation of customers of Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E),
Southern California Edison, and San Diego Gas and Electric Company
(SDG&E) from extra power surcharges.  Customers who installed their own
power generation before Jan. 17, 2001, when the California Department of
Water Resources (DWR) began contracting for electricity, are exempt from
most surcharges, as are customer generation systems that meet certain
environmental criteria.  The exceptions to the surcharges are created to
promote economic incentives to develop various forms of alternative
generation, as well as to comply with Legislative and Commission policy.

The surcharge concept (referred to as a Cost Responsibility Surcharge)
was originally developed for direct access customers to share costs and
avoid burdening the remaining utility customers with the costs incurred
for those customers who later left the utilities’ systems.  However, the
Commission decided that such surcharges should not be applied to a set
of customer generation, since those investments generally benefit the
system and do not impose extra costs.  Thus, exemptions are made on the
basis of broader public policy to encourage self-generation and the use
of renewable resources.
By creating exceptions to surcharges for many types of self-generation,
the PUC is removing barriers to installation of clean customer-owned
generation and removing the cloud of uncertainty that has been
discouraging customers from investing in systems.
To that end, the PUC provides the following exemptions:
1) Systems smaller than 1 megawatt (MW) that are net metered and/or
eligible for PUC or California Energy Commission (CEC) incentives for
being clean and super-clean are fully exempt from any surcharge; this
includes many solar and wind systems, as well as fuel cells;
2) Ultra-clean and low-emission systems (such as solar) that are 1 MW or
greater that meet Senate Bill (SB) 1038 requirements to comply with CARB
2007 air emission standards will pay 100 percent of the bond charge, but
no future DWR charges or utility undercollection surcharges;
3) All other self-generation customers will pay all components of the
surcharge except the DWR ongoing power charges.
When the combined total installed generation reaches 3,000 MW, or when
the generation in the third category reaches periodic lower caps set by
the Commission, any additional customer generation installed will pay
all surcharges.  The overall cap is based on the 10-year forecast of
departing load that DWR relied upon when negotiating its contracts, and
therefore any self-generation installed under that cap does not result
in shifting of costs to other customers. The caps on nonrenewable
self-generation are to ensure that priority is given to renewable and
ultra-clean generation sources.
The surcharge includes costs related to financing the bonds that were
sold to cover revenue shortfalls in 2001, ongoing power costs, and
transition costs (recovery of generation-related costs to enable
utilities to transition to a competitive market).  State law, through
Assembly Bill (AB) 117, requires that DWR be fully reimbursed for its
purchases, but leaves to the PUC’s discretion the determination of each
customer’s fair share of those costs.  Most customers who install
self-generation still remain utility customers and therefore still
contribute to DWR and transition costs.  Other Bills, SB 28X, AB 29X,
and AB 970, to name a few, have encouraged California businesses and
residents to invest in generation, particularly generation from
renewable resources.
In order to continue its support for renewable and clean generation,
especially when customers have invested their own funds to provide this
generation and assist the entire electric system, the Commission adopted
this decision today.
The Commission also offers financial incentives, through its
Self-Generation Incentive Program, to encourage customers to invest in
clean and super-clean generating technologies.  More information on this
program is available on the Commission’s website at www.cpuc.ca.gov.

Pat Redgate wrote:

> We have just been told by Rudison at Edison that connect charges for Grid
> Tied systems will be initiated in '03.  She could not tell us what the
> charges will be but mentioned that they would run at least $25.00 and
> probably more.
>
> Has anybody else heard about this?
>
> Pat Redgate
> AMECO
>
> --
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