Procurement Bids Enter Edison?s Door

Southern California Edison received a ?very robust? response to its solicitations for power contracts for terms of up to 10 years, according to Pedro Pizarro, Edison?s senior vice-president of power procurement. The nonbinding notices of intent submitted by generators offering new power include proposals of ?varying technologies, locations, sizes and on-line dates,? according to a May 4 statement by Edison. To help meet California Public Utilities Commission requirements, Edison issued a request for offers April 22, requiring new in-basin generation to come on line between June 2006 and August 2008. It seeks up to 1,500 MW of installed capacity and ?reserves the right to sign no contracts if bids are unsatisfactory,? according to its solicitation. The utility insists that the 2006-08 window is needed to address the state?s power supply concerns and alleviate the threat of blackouts inside and outside Edison territory during summer energy spikes. Edison also proposes to spread the cost of new power contracts it signs among all ratepayers receiving electricity from the main north-south transmission line, South Path 15?which includes direct access and municipal power agency customers. Generators, however, complained that the two-year time frame would eliminate many project candidates. ?The fuse is short, by design,? said Gary Ackerman, Western Power Trading Forum executive director. Independent power producers also fear that the precedent-setting proposal seeking to expand rate liability for additional power beyond Edison?s ratepayers would slow, and possibly halt, Edison?s acquisition of third-party power ( Circuit , April 29, 2005). Another problem, according to Ackerman, is that the RFO is limited to brand-new resources. It ?excludes existing resources, as well as those resources under construction and in the California Energy Commission?s? supply forecasts, he claims. Pizarro said that Edison is working to ?jump-start? the process and get projects on line ?as early as next summer.? The utility will not wait for a decision by the CPUC on its rate allocation proposal and plans to sign procurement contracts this September, he said. The contracts, however, would contain a provision stating that the deals are contingent on CPUC approval. By the end of next week, Edison hopes to submit a filing requesting that the CPUC approve spreading out the costs of new generation it buys among all SP15 ratepayers. The utility?s reasoning is that its ratepayers receive 60 percent of the high-voltage line?s benefits and other utility customers could tap into the new supplies.

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Procurement Bids Enter Edison?s Door

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