OG&E has filed a rate case requesting an additional $92.5 million from its electric customers in Oklahoma, primarily to recover the costs of the addition of $1.6 billion in infrastructure. OG&E’s proposed rate-design changes are bold, both for standard customers and for DG customers. In particular, it has proposed adding demand charges to all non-demand tariffs (except for optional time-varying tariffs), to be measured on a 15-minute non-coincident peak basis. It also proposed doubling the monthly customer charges for many customer classes, while continuing implementation of DG-specific tariffs. Among the key changes proposed are:

• For all residential (R-1) customers, doubling the monthly customer charge from $13.00 to $26.54, while adding a $2.75/kW demand charge measured based on the maximum 15-minute peak usage.
• For small general service customers, doubling the monthly customer charge from $24.70 to $48.50, and adding a $2.90/kW demand charge.

For DG customers, OG&E would generally maintain the rate structure it has proposed in a separate proceeding (pending) that addresses OG&E’s DG tariffs filed pursuant to S.B. 1456 of 2014. Under the proposal, residential customers who install DG after October 31, 2014, must take service under a tariff that includes a monthly customer charge of $26.54 and a demand charge of $1.78/kW. Commercial customers who install DG must take service under a tariff that includes a monthly customer charge of $48.50 and a demand charge of $3.94/kW.

Note:  EQ Research tracks, analyzes and provides summaries of general rate cases in all 50 U.S. states. For more information, click here.