Orders

IN THE MATTER OF

the Utilities Commission Act, RSBC 1996, Chapter 473

and

British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority

Application for Approval of Section 2.5 Guidelines

for Tariff Supplement No. 3 to Rate Schedule 3808

BEFORE:               L. A. O’Hara, Panel Chair/Commissioner               

B. A. Magnan, Commissioner                                                                      December 19, 2014

                                R. D. Revel, Commissioner

O  R  D  E  R

WHEREAS:

A.      On May 24, 2013, British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority (BC Hydro) filed an application with the British Columbia Utilities Commission (Commission) for Approval of Rates between BC Hydro and FortisBC Inc. (FBC) with regards to Rate Schedule 3808 (RS 3808), Tariff Supplement No. 3 – Power Purchase and Associated Agreements, and Tariff Supplement No. 2 to Rate Schedule 3808 (RS 3808 Application);

B.      The RS 3808 Application requested approval to, among other things, replace an existing 1993 Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with FBC under RS 3808 with a New PPA;

C.      The RS 3808 Application proposed that Section 2.5 of the New PPA, contained in Tariff Supplement No. 3 to RS 3808, include the following language:

(a) Electricity taken under this Agreement:

(ii) shall not be sold to any FortisBC customer with self-generation facilities, or used by FortisBC to serve any such customer’s load, when such customer is selling self-generated Electricity unless a portion of the customer’s load equal to or greater than the customer-specific baseline is being served by Electricity that is not Electricity taken under this Agreement, where such customer-specific baseline is as determined in accordance with Commission-approved guidelines and in consultation with the customer;[1]

D.      By Order G-60-14, on May 6, 2014, the Commission approved the RS 3808 Application, including Section 2.5 (a)(ii), and by way of Directive 2 required BC Hydro to initiate a consultation process resulting in an application for RS 3808, Section 2.5 customer-specific baseline guidelines (RS 3808 Guidelines); 

E.       On November 20, 2014, BC Hydro held a workshop for its customer associations that regularly intervene in Commission proceedings, BC Hydro and FBC’s customers with self-generation facilities and Commission staff to discuss, among other things, the draft RS 3808 Guidelines;

F.       On December 15, 2014, in compliance with Order G-60-14, BC Hydro filed an Application for Approval of Section 2.5 Guidelines for Tariff Supplement No. 3 to Rate Schedule 3808 (Application);

G.     BC Hydro proposes in the Application that a written review process with one round of information requests followed written arguements is appropriate; and

H.      The Commission has considered BC Hydro’s proposed regulatory timetable and finds that an initial regulatory timetable should be established.

NOW THEREFORE the Commission orders as follows:

1.       A regulatory timetable for the initial review of the Application is set out in Appendix A to this order.

2.       The British Columbia Utilities Commission (Commission) will seek submissions on further regulatory process, as set out in Appendix A, after receipt of intervener registrations. The Commission will issue a letter, in due course, providing direction regarding the further process after its review of the submissions.

3.       BC Hydro is to provide a copy of this Commission order, electronically where possible, to all parties who participated in the Application for Approval of Rates between BC Hydro and FortisBC Inc. with regards to Rate Schedule 3808, Tariff Supplement No. 3 – Power Purchase and Associated Agreements, and Tariff Supplement No. 2 to Rate Schedule 3817 proceeding.

DATED at the City of Vancouver, in the Province of British Columbia, this     19^th            day of December 2014.

                                                                                                                                BY ORDER

                                                                                                                            Original signed by:

L. A. O’Hara

                                                                                                                                Commissioner

British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority

Application for Approval of Section 2.5 Guidelines

for Tariff Supplement No. 3 to Rate Schedule 3808

REGULATORY TIMETABLE