ORDER NUMBER
G-12-20
IN THE MATTER OF
the Utilities Commission Act, RSBC 1996, Chapter 473
and
FortisBC Energy Inc.
Application for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity
for the Inland Gas Upgrades Project
BEFORE:
A. K. Fung, QC, Panel Chair
E. B. Lockhart, Commissioner
T. A. Loski, Commissioner
R. D. Revel, Commissioner
on January 21, 2020
ORDER
WHEREAS:
A. On December 17, 2018, FortisBC Energy Inc. (FEI) submitted an application to the British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC) pursuant to sections 45 and 46 of the Utilities Commission Act (UCA), seeking approval of a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) for the Inland Gas Upgrades (IGU) Project (Application);
B. FEI also seeks approval of a deferral account, pursuant to sections 59 to 61 of the UCA, to capture the regulatory costs of this Application and the costs expended for the purpose of evaluating the feasibility of and preliminary development of the Project;
C. By Order G-11-19 dated January 17, 2019, the BCUC established a regulatory timetable for the review of the Application which consisted of intervener registration and one round of information requests (IR);
D. By Order G-79-19 dated April 12, 2019, the BCUC amended the regulatory timetable to allow for a second round of IRs, followed by a workshop/procedural conference on July 10, 2019;
E. By Order G-153-19 dated July 11, 2019, the BCUC further amended the regulatory timetable to allow for a third round of IRs, submission dates for final and reply arguments and a placeholder for a Streamlined Review Process (SRP);
F. By Order G-219-19 dated September 11, 2019, the BCUC subsequently amended the regulatory timetable to cancel the SRP and establish dates for final and reply argument; and
G. The BCUC has reviewed the evidence in this proceeding and finds that certain approvals are warranted.
NOW THEREFORE pursuant to sections 45 to 46 and 59 to 61 of the Utilities Commission Act and for the reasons set out in the decision issued concurrently with this order, the British Columbia Utilities Commission orders as follows:
1. A CPCN is granted to FEI for the IGU Project.
2. FEI is approved to establish the IGU Project Application and Preliminary Stage Development Costs deferral account to record the Application and preliminary stage development costs to be amortized over three years commencing January 1, 2020.
3. FEI is directed to comply with all the directives outlined in Section 9 of the decision issued concurrently with this order.
DATED at the City of Vancouver, in the Province of British Columbia, this 21st day of January 2020.
BY ORDER
Original signed by:
A. K. Fung, QC
Commissioner