IN THE MATTER OF
the Utilities Commission Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, Chapter 473
and
Creative Energy Vancouver Platforms Inc.
Section 71 Filing of 2015-16 Natural Gas Energy Supply Contract
BEFORE: L. F. Kelsey, Commissioner
H. G. Harowitz, Commissioner October 22, 2015
O R D E R
WHEREAS:
A. On November 10, 2011, by Order E-23-11 pursuant to section 71 of the Utilities Commission Act, the British Columbia Utilities Commission (Commission) accepted the Central Heat Distribution Limited, now Creative Energy Vancouver Platforms Inc. (Creative Energy) filing of a Gas Sales and Purchase Agreement between Central Heat Distribution Limited and Cascadia Energy Ltd. (Cascadia) dated July 15, 2009 (Original Contract);
B. On February 26, 2015, the Commission issued Order E-3-15 accepting three Schedule A agreements with various amendments to the Original Contract for the 2014/15 contract year (together the Current Contract). In Order E-3-15 the Commission also directed Creative Energy to file an annual contracting plan for the 2015/16 contract year;
C. Creative Energy filed its annual contracting plan for the period November 1, 2015 through October 31, 2016 (2015/16 ACP) with the Commission on August 7, 2015. In the 2015/16 ACP Creative Energy set out its process and criteria for reviewing the gas supply contracting alternatives available to Creative Energy at the end of the term of the Current Contract including Creative Energy’s strategy to enter into a fixed forward price contract for approximately 25 percent of its winter natural gas supply requirement for the 2015/16 contract year;
D. On August 27, 2015, the Commission issued Letter L-33-15 accepting Creative Energy’s 2015/16 ACP as being in the public interest;
E. On October 2, 2015, Creative Energy filed the 2015-16 Natural Gas Energy Supply Contract, a fixed forward price contract with Cascadia for the delivery period November 1, 2015 to March 31, 2016 (2015-16 Contract);
F. Order G-130-06 Appendix A, Rules for Natural Gas Energy Supply Contracts, states that “[p]arties filing natural gas energy supply contracts with the Commission under Section 71, and wishing confidentiality, shall provide written justification as to why it is in the public interest that the filed contracts be kept confidential”;
G. On October 13, 2015,Creative Energy filed a letter requesting that the 2015-16 Contract and Original Contract be kept confidential as the contract terms are commercially sensitive; and
H. The Commission reviewed the Creative Energy filings and is satisfied that the 2015-16 Contract between Creative Energy and Cascadia is aligned with the 2016/16 ACP and should be accepted as being in the public interest and that the 2015-16 Contract and Original Contract should be kept confidential.
NOW THEREFORE pursuant to section 71 of the Utilities Commission Act and the British Columbia Utilities Commission’s Rules for Natural Gas Energy Supply Contracts the Commission accepts the 2015-16 Natural Gas Energy Supply Contract between Creative Energy Vancouver Platforms Inc. and Cascadia Energy Ltd. as being in the public interest. The Commission will keep the 2015-16 Natural Gas Energy Supply Contract and the Original Contract confidential due to its commercially sensitive nature.
DATED at the City of Vancouver, in the Province of British Columbia, this 22nd day of October 2015.
BY ORDER
Original signed by:
L. F. Kelsey
Commissioner