Orders

ORDER NUMBER

G-6-22

 

IN THE MATTER OF

the Utilities Commission Act, RSBC 1996, Chapter 473

 

and

 

Pacific Northern Gas Ltd. and

Pacific Northern Gas (N.E.) Ltd.

Application for Approval of a Low Carbon Energy Cost Recovery Mechanism and

Biomethane Purchase Agreements

 

BEFORE:

R. I. Mason, Panel Chair

A. C. Dennier, Commissioner

M. Kresivo, QC, Commissioner

 

on January 11, 2022

 

ORDER

WHEREAS:

 

A.      On November 17, 2021, Pacific Northern Gas Ltd. and Pacific Northern Gas (N.E.) Ltd. (collectively, PNG) submitted an application to the British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC) pursuant to sections 59 to 61 of the Utilities Commission Act (UCA) seeking approval of a Low Carbon Energy (LCE) Cost Recovery Mechanism, and pursuant to section 71 of the UCA and the BCUC Rules for Natural Gas Energy Supply Contracts seeking approval of Biomethane Purchase Agreements (BPAs) with ATCO Future Fuel RNG Limited Partnership (ATCO) and Tidal Energy Marketing Inc. (Tidal) (Application);

B.      PNG requests, among other things, to establish an LCE rate of $27.50/Gigajoule and to recover LCE-related costs through sales to voluntary LCE customers, PNG’s own company use gas, and off-system sales. PNG seeks approval to capture unrecovered LCE-related costs in a new deferral account to be recovered from customers through an LCE cost recovery rate rider;

C.      PNG proposes a written hearing process for the review of the Application;

D.      PNG requests that the redacted portions of the Application and certain appendices be kept confidential due to their commercially sensitive nature; and

E.       The BCUC has commenced review of the Application and determines that a public hearing process is warranted.

NOW THEREFORE the BCUC orders as follows:

 

1.       A public hearing process is established in accordance with the regulatory timetable set out in Appendix A to this order.

2.       PNG is directed to publish on its website the Application, this order and the regulatory timetable attached as Appendix A to this order, and to provide a copy of the same to registered parties of the following proceedings by Friday, January 21, 2022:

a.       PNG 2020–21 Revenue Requirements Application;

b.       PNG Application Regarding Process for Allocation of Reactivated Capacity and Approval of Large Volume Industrial Transportation Rate; and

c.       PNG Application for Acceptance of 2019 Consolidated Resource Plan and for Acceptance of Energy Conservation and Innovation Portfolio Funding for 2020 to 2022.

3.       PNG is to publish in print/display-ad format, as soon as reasonably possible but no later than Friday, January 21, 2022, the Notice of Application attached as Appendix B to this order, in such appropriate news publications as may properly provide adequate notice to the public in the affected service areas.

4.       PNG must publish notice of this Application on its website and its Twitter and Facebook social media platforms as soon as reasonably possible but no later than Friday, January 21, 2022.

5.       In accordance with the BCUC’s Rules of Practice and Procedure attached as Appendix A to Order G-15-19, parties who wish to participate in the proceeding may submit a letter of comment, register as an interested party or request intervener status. Parties requesting intervener status must register with the BCUC by completing a Request to Intervene Form available on the BCUC’s website by the date established in the regulatory timetable attached as Appendix A to this order.

 

DATED at the City of Vancouver, in the Province of British Columbia, this            11^th             day of January 2022.

 

BY ORDER

 

Original signed by:

 

R. I. Mason

Commissioner

 

 

Attachment

 

 

Pacific Northern Gas Ltd. and

Pacific Northern Gas (N.E.) Ltd.

Application for Approval of a Low Carbon Energy Cost Recovery Mechanism and

Biomethane Purchase Agreements

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pacific Northern Gas Ltd. and Pacific Northern Gas (N.E.) Ltd.
Low Carbon Energy Cost Recovery Mechanism and Biomethane Purchase Agreements

On November 17, 2021, Pacific Northern Gas Ltd. and Pacific Northern Gas (N.E.) Ltd. (collectively, PNG) submitted an application to the British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC) seeking approval of a Low Carbon Energy (LCE) Cost Recovery Mechanism pursuant to sections 59 to 61 of the Utilities Commission Act (UCA).

Among other items, PNG requests acceptance of two Biomethane Purchase Agreements (BPAs) for the acquisition of LCE. PNG proposes to establish new rate schedules for LCE customers and to capture the amounts spent on LCE procurement, administration, and marketing, which are not recovered in LCE rates in a new deferral account. Under PNG’s proposal, balances in the deferral account would be recovered through a rate rider on PNG’s non-bypass customers, and costs of supplying LCE for PNG’s company use gas would be recovered through the company use gas cost rate from PNG’s natural gas customers in areas where LCE service is available.

For more information about the Application, please visit the Proceeding Webpage on bcuc.com under
“Our Work – Proceedings”. To learn more about getting involved, please visit our website at www.bcuc.com/get-involved or contact us at the information below.

 

GET MORE INFORMATION
Pacific Northern Gas Ltd. Suite 750, 888 Dunsmuir Street Vancouver, BC  V6C 3K4   E: votto@png.ca   P: 604.691.5680	British Columbia Utilities Commission Suite 410, 900 Howe Street Vancouver, BC Canada  V6Z 2N3   E: Commission.Secretary@bcuc.com   P: 604.660.4700