The LPSC meeting is this Wednesday, June 19th in Baton Rouge (yes, on a Federal Holiday), and there’s some big items to watch!
Exhibit 4 (docket R-35462) is a vote on the LPSC’s Customer Centered Options Phase I rules. Although many of the renewable options have been excluded from this rule, we’re optimistic these will be considered separately and addressed directly in their own separate dockets. A good piece of news from this docket is a set of new annual reporting requirements for utilities to provide the Commission and the public with insight into everything from their power mix to how many customers are relying on bill assistance to keep the lights on.
Exhibit 5 (docket R-36263) is a vote on the LPSC’s Minimum Capacity Obligation which determines how much generation we need for the state. The Alliance wasn’t involved in this docket but is pleased to see the Commission looking to include generation from all of the MISO South region, rather than just Louisiana. This will allow for better resource options via transmission and a more competitive market.
Exhibit 9 is a Directive from Commissioner Campbell to look more closely into SWEPCO’s storm related outages. Resilience is top of mind this hurricane season so we’re curious as to how it goes!
The supplemental agenda includes Exhibit 10 (docket U-36923), a significant proposed increase in rates for Cleco customers. We’ve taken no position as the rate hikes, up to 10.6% increase, are unaffordable, yet mitigation seems unattainable. You can read more about our position here, but we are looking forward to seeing lower late fee charges and a revised Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) to get a deeper understanding of how other resources stack up against Diamond Vault, the proposed carbon capture & sequestration (CCS) facility at Cleco’s Madison 3 pet-coke power plant.
