Orders

IN THE MATTER OF

the Utilities Commission Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, Chapter 473

and

An Application by AltaGas Utility Holdings (Pacific) Inc.

for Approval of the Acquisition of the Issued and Outstanding Shares of Pacific Northern Gas Ltd.

BEFORE:                 A.W. K. Anderson, Panel Chair

                                D. Morton, Commissioner                                                  November 4, 2011

                                R. Revel, Commissioner

O  R  D  E  R

WHEREAS:

A.       On October 31, 2011, AltaGas Utility Holdings (Pacific) Inc. (AltaGas or the Applicant) applied, pursuant to section 54 of the Utilities Commission Act (the Act), for an Order approving the acquisition of all of the issued and outstanding common shares of Pacific Northern Gas Ltd. (PNG) which would also cause AltaGas to have indirect control of PNG’s wholly owned subsidiary Pacific Northern Gas (N.E.) Ltd. (PNG(N.E.)) (the Application);

B.       On October 31, 2011, PNG applied, pursuant to section 54(5) of the Act, for approval to register a transfer of its common shares to AltaGas;

C.       PNG and PNG(N.E.) are public utilities regulated by the British Columbia Utilities Commission (the Commission) under the Act;

D.       AltaGas is a direct wholly owned subsidiary of AltaGas Ltd.;

E.        Section 54(9) of the Act states:

“The commission may give its approval under this section subject to conditions and requirements it considers necessary or desirable in the public interest, but the commission must not give its approval under this section unless it considers that the public utility and the users of the service of the public utility will not be detrimentally affected.”;

F.        PNG has jointly undertaken communication and consultation with key stakeholders of PNG and PNG(N.E.);

G.       AltaGas has proposed a written submission process and an accelerated regulatory schedule within the Application;

H.       The Commission has determined that a regulatory timetable should be established and a public notice should be issued.

NOW THEREFORE the Commission orders as follows:

1.       The Application shall be examined by way of a transcribed Integrated Review Process in the presence of the Commission Panel, AltaGas, PNG, Registered Interveners, and Commission Staff.  This session is to take place at 9:00 a.m. on Tuesday, November 22, 2011 at the Commission Hearing Room located on the 12th Floor, 1125 Howe Street, Vancouver, BC V6Z 2K8.  Information describing the established regulatory process will be made available to all participants in advance of the Integrated Review Process.

2.       The Regulatory Timetable attached as Appendix A to this Order, is established.

3.       PNG is to publish, as soon as possible, in display-ad format, the Notice of Regulatory Timetable, attached as Appendix B to this Order, in the Vancouver Sun, the Province and local regional news papers in PNG’s and PNG(N.E.)’s service area.

4.       The Application, together with any supporting materials, will be made available for inspection at PNG’s Office, Suite 950, 1185 West Georgia Street, Vancouver, BC, V6E 4E6 and at the British Columbia Utilities Commission, Sixth Floor, 900 Howe Street, Vancouver, BC, V6Z 2N3 and will also be available on both the PNG and the Commission websites.

5.       PNG is to provide a copy of this Order and the Application, by facsimile or electronically, to all parties that registered as interveners into PNG’s and PNG(N.E.)’s 2011 revenue requirements applications as well as all stakeholders identified in Schedule “B” to the Application.

6.       Interveners or Interested Parties should register with the Commission, in writing or electronic submission, by Tuesday, November 15, 2011, and advise whether they intend to attend the Integrated Review Process on November 22, 2011.  Interveners should specifically state the nature of their interest in the Application and identify generally the nature of the issues that they may intend to pursue at the Integrated Review Process.

DATED at the City of Vancouver, in the Province of British Columbia, this     Fourth      day of November 2011.

                                                                                                                                BY ORDER

                                                                                                                            Original signed by:

                                                                                                                                A.W.K. Anderson

                                                                                                                                Panel Chair

Attachments

AltaGas Utility Holdings (Pacific) Inc.

Application for Approval of the Acquisition of the Issued and Outstanding Shares of Pacific Northern Gas Ltd.

REGULATORY TIMETABLE

Integrated Review Process Location:

                                        Date:              November 22, 2011

                                        Time:              9:00 a.m.

                                        Location:       Commission Hearing Room

                                                                12th Floor

                                                                1125 Howe Street

                                                                Vancouver, BC

AltaGas Utility Holdings (Pacific) Inc.

Application for Approval of the Acquisition of the Issued and Outstanding Shares of Pacific Northern Gas Ltd.

NOTICE OF APPLICATION, REGULATORY TIMETABLE

AND INTEGRATED REVIEW PROCESS

THE APPLICATION

AltaGas Utility Holdings (Pacific) Inc. (AltaGas), a Canadian corporation and a direct wholly owned subsidiary of AltaGas Ltd., has applied to the British Columbia Utilities Commission (Commission) for approval pursuant to section 54 of the Utilities Commission Act, of the acquisition of all of the issued and outstanding common shares of Pacific Northern Gas Ltd. (PNG), which would also cause AltaGas to have indirect control of PNG’s wholly owned subsidiary Pacific Northern Gas (N.E.) Ltd. (PNG(N.E.)).

THE REGULATORY TIMETABLE

The Commission has established the following Regulatory Timetable:

NOTICE OF INTEGRATED REVIEW PROCESS

PUBLIC INSPECTION OF THE APPLICATION

The Application, together with any supporting materials, will be made available for inspection at the PNG Office, Suite 950, 1185 West Georgia Street, Vancouver, BC, V6E 4E6 and at the British Columbia Utilities Commission, Sixth Floor, 900 Howe Street, Vancouver, BC, V6Z 2N3.

The Application will also be available for viewing on the PNG website at www.png.ca and the Commission’s website at www.bcuc.com.

REGISTERING TO PARTICIPATE

Persons who expect to actively participate in this proceeding should register as Interveners with the Commission, in writing or electronic submission, by Tuesday, November 15, 2011, identifying their interest in the Application and indicating whether they plan to attend the Integrated Review Process.  Interveners should identify the issues that they intend to pursue and the nature and extent of their anticipated involvement in the review process. 

Persons not expecting to actively participate, but who have an interest in the proceeding should register as Interested Parties with the Commission, in writing or electronic submission, by Tuesday, November 15, 2011, identifying their interest in the Application and indicating whether they plan to attend the  Integrated Review Process.

Information describing the established regulatory process will be made available to all Registered Interveners and Interested Parties participants upon registration.

All submissions and/or correspondence received from active participants or the public relating to the Application will be placed on the public record and posted to the Commission’s web site.

FURTHER INFORMATION

For further information, please contact Ms. Alanna Gillis, Acting Commission Secretary, or Mr. Philip Nakoneshny, Director, Rates and Finance, as follows:

Telephone:                           (604) 660-4700 or (B.C. Toll Free) 1-800-663-1385

Facsimile:                              (604) 660-1102

E-mail:                                    commission.secretary@bcuc.com