An interesting little breaking news item:
The West Virginia Public Service Commission has ordered American Electric Power to turn over documents concerning its demands-demand side management and energy efficiency programs.
The PSC order is available here, and it is the result of an effort by the West Virginia-Citizen Action Group to have conservancy and energy efficiency be a bigger part of the commission’s consideration of AEP’s huge rate increase request, currently pending before the PSC.
Lawyers for AEP opposed the WV-CAG request, but Citizen Action lawyer (and loyal Coal Tattoo reader) Tom Rodd explained that the PSC had already granted WV-CAG’s request to intervene in the case for the central purpose of arguing that AEP can and should reduce costs to its customers with better conservation and efficiency measures.
Hearings on the rate request are scheduled for next month.
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And here’s AEP’s dilemma…to the extent that they show a whole lot of “green” energy coming on stream, they undercut the case for a rate increase because it is going to be cheaper, particularly in a post-cap & trade world. So, if costs are headed down, why should rates go up?
Alternatively, to the extent AEP claims that “green” energy is a pointy-head’s illusion on a distant horizon, they undercut their already paper thin claim in the PATH case — in which they are requesting permission to build a 765V line originating at the 2900 MW coal-fired John Amos plant in Winfield — that PATH is really a “green” line.
AEP will try to reconcile these positions with a variation on the old “I’ll gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today.”
The pitch will be “You should be glad to pay me today for a hamburger Tuesday (but we aint saying what Tuesday).
I like the Wimpy quote!
WVCAG will be presenting a lot of evidence on what AEP can and should do to keep their costs and demand down through promoting energy efficiency and conservation. WVCAG will also be advocating for measures to prevent undue hardship to low-income people with any increase.
Whatever the sources of energy, the evidence is indisputable that by far the cheapest way for a utility to produce or “buy” energy — is to help their customers conserve it!
The hearings are scheduled for June 15-19 at the PSC in Charleston. The public is welcome to attend. Contact WVCAG at 304-346-5891, garyz@wvcag.org, for more info, including the date(s) on which WVCAG’s witnesses will testify.