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Public Utilities Commission Approves Rate Increase for Public Service Company of Colorado

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

The Public Utilities Commission of the State of Colorado has approved a rate increase for Public Service Company of Colorado (Public Service) to be effective on April 1, 2022. The decision, which was made on March 23, 2022, allows Public Service to revise its gas cost adjustment (GCA) to reflect an increase in natural gas costs. The proposed tariffs will increase GCA revenues by approximately $7,366,056, which is a 6.79 percent increase above the first quarter 2022 revenues.

The decision was made after Public Service filed an application requesting a Commission order authorizing it to revise its GCA without a formal hearing and on less-than-statutory notice. The application was filed on March 15, 2022, and included all materials required by the Commission's rules. Public Service sought to defer amounts from February 2021 to enable the Commission to review the prudence of the incremental costs incurred in response to the extreme weather event from February 13 through 19, 2021.

The proposed tariffs will affect Public Service's customers in its Colorado certificated areas and will result in an increase in the company's natural gas rates. The natural gas costs reflected in this filing are based on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) April, May, and June 2022 daily Settlement Price for natural gas on the first business day of the month or March 1, 2022.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Public Utilities Commission of the State of Colorado has approved a rate increase for Public Service Company of Colorado (Public Service) to be effective on April 1, 2022.
  • The proposed tariffs will increase GCA revenues by approximately $7,366,056, which is a 6.79 percent increase above the first quarter 2022 revenues.
  • Public Service sought to defer amounts from February 2021 to enable the Commission to review the prudence of the incremental costs incurred in response to the extreme weather event from February 13 through 19, 2021.
  • The proposed tariffs will affect Public Service's customers in its Colorado certificated areas and will result in an increase in the company's natural gas rates.
  • The natural gas costs reflected in this filing are based on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) April, May, and June 2022 daily Settlement Price for natural gas on the first business day of the month or March 1, 2022.
  • Public Service has incorporated the deferred gas component of the GCA net of the costs associated with the extreme weather event as of February 28, 2022.
  • The proposed tariffs are attached to the application and affect Applicant's customers in its Colorado certificated areas on file with the Commission.

Statistics:

  • The proposed tariffs will increase GCA revenues by approximately $7,366,056, which is a 6.79 percent increase above the first quarter 2022 revenues.
  • The natural gas costs reflected in this filing are based on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) April, May, and June 2022 daily Settlement Price for natural gas on the first business day of the month or March 1, 2022.
  • The NYMEX price for each of those three months was adjusted for the basis differentials applicable to regional indices used by the Company for its gas purchases.

Sources:

  • "Decision No. C22-0179" issued by the Public Utilities Commission of the State of Colorado on March 25, 2022

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