Oklahoma regulators meet Thursday to consider two more requests of utilities to use a year-old securitization law to assist them in covering nearly $800 million in February 2021 storm costs that will be passed along to ratepayers.
Corporation Commissioners, in a 9:30 a.m. meeting will vote on a request by CenterPoint Energy to cover nearly $88 million in storm costs and another by Public Service Company of Oklahoma to cover nearly $690 million in costs.
Both utilities seek a “Financing Order approving securitization of costs arising from the February 2021 winter weather event pursuant to the February 2021 Regulated Utility Consumer Protection Act.” The act was the measure created and quickly adopted last year by the Oklahoma legislature but has also been challenged legally in a case being reviewed before the Oklahoma Supreme Court.
Both utilities seek use of the Securitization Act which allows the use of ratepayer-backed bonds over an extended period of time. In the case of CenterPoint Energy, the national firm requested coverage of $87,678,270 to be financed over a 15-year period.
In a joint stipulation agreement with the Oklahoma Attorney General and the Public Utilities Division of the Corporation Commission, the request was made to allow the Oklahoma Development Finance Authority to provide net proceeds to CenterPoint as soon as possible in 2022 but no later than Dec. 31, 2022.
PSO’s request totals $688 million over a 20-year amortization including $675.2 million in what are described as “extreme purchase costs” made during Winter Storm Uri last February.
The stipulation agreement for PSO was approved by the Attorney General, the PUD of the Corporation Commission, Walmart Inc. and the Oklahoma Industrial Energy Consumers group.
In the current case before the state supreme court, it involves Oklahoma Gas and Electric and its financing order approved in December 2021 by the commission. It was approved on a 2-1 vote with Commissioner Bob Anthony in dissent.
OG&E’s order would allow state-issued bonds on behalf of the utility and the company would be allowed to charge its customers to repay the bondholders over a 28-year period.
