ORDER NUMBER
G-168-20
IN THE MATTER OF
the Utilities Commission Act, RSBC 1996, Chapter 473
and
British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority
Application to Amend Net Metering Service under Rate Schedule 1289
BEFORE:
D. A. Cote, Panel Chair
R. I. Mason, Commissioner
R. D. Revel, Commissioner
on June 23, 2020
ORDER
WHEREAS:
A. On April 29, 2019, pursuant to section 59 to 61 of the Utilities Commission Act (UCA), British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority (BC Hydro) filed an application to seek approval from the British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC) to, among other things, amend the availability, billing and rate provisions in Rate Schedule (RS) 1289 (Application);
B. In the Application, BC Hydro proposes to:
• Make permanent the amendments sought in the 2018 BC Hydro Application to Amend Net Metering Service under RS 1289 (2018 Amendment Application), that were approved on an interim basis by Order G-100-18, dated June 1, 2018, with adjustments to provide additional flexibility to meet the current and future needs of customers;
• Assign all customers a default Anniversary Date of March 1 and to allow customers to choose their own Anniversary Date once;
• Update the Energy Price from 9.99 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) to an amount that reflects the price BC Hydro can sell the electricity for on the regional wholesale market;
• Make various minor amendments to improve the clarity, simplicity and safety of the Net Metering Program and to reflect existing program practices; and
• Maintain the current Energy Price of 9.99 cents per kWh for all customers with accepted applications as of April 20, 2018, for a period of five years;
C. By Orders G-103-19A G-144-19, G-185-19, G-217-19A, G-276-19, G-281-19, and G-293-19, the BCUC established a written hearing process and regulatory timetable to review the Application, which included two rounds of information requests (IR) to BC Hydro, submission on further process, submission of intervener evidence, IRs on intervener evidence, BC Hydro rebuttal evidence, IRs on BC Hydro rebuttal evidence to BC Hydro, and written final arguments;
D. BC Hydro filed its Final Argument on February 27, 2020. By March 13, 2020, interveners filed their Final Arguments. BC Hydro filed its Reply Argument on March 26, 2020; and
E. The Panel has reviewed the Application, evidence and arguments and considers the following determinations are warranted.
NOW THEREFORE, pursuant to section 59 to 61 of the UCA, the BCUC orders as follows:
1. The proposed amendment to the Energy Price from 9.99 cents per kilowatt hour to an amount that would be updated every January 1 based on the daily average Mid-Columbia prices for the previous calendar year is approved.
2. All Net Metering customers accepted into the Net Metering Program as of April 28, 2019 shall be eligible to receive the Transitional Energy Price of 9.99 cents per kilowatt-hour for any surplus energy payments made from April 29, 2019 until April 30, 2024.
3. The proposal to limit the output of a Net Metering Generating Facility to not exceed 110 percent of the customer’s annual load is rejected.
4. The proposal to assign all Net Metering customers a March 1 default Anniversary Date with one opportunity to choose an alternative date thereafter is approved.
5. BC Hydro is directed to file an evaluation report by October 31, 2020. The evaluation report shall include the content as specified under Section 5.0 of this Decision.
6. BC Hydro is directed to file revised tariff pages that reflects the directives contained in this order for endorsement within 30 days from the date of this order for approval by this Panel.
7. BC Hydro shall comply with all other directives included in the Decision.
DATED at the City of Vancouver, in the Province of British Columbia, this 23rd day of June, 2020.
BY ORDER
Original signed by:
D. A. Cote
Commissioner