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Thursday, April 24, 2008

CNME Meeting To Address Questions About PRC

By Laura Nesbitt /
Mountain View Telegraph
      The general manager of Central New Mexico Electric Cooperative is not anticipating a large crowd at Saturday’s annual meeting asking questions about the ongoing Public Regulation Commission investigations.
       “I have not heard anything detrimental or in favor” from the public since the PRC hearing held in Moriarty on March 19 and attended by more than 200 people, said John Wheeler, CEO and general manager of the co-op.
       “I really think that people wanted to vent when the PRC was here, and they got their venting done, and then they let it go,” Wheeler said.
       Saturday’s annual meeting will be at Estancia High School in the gymnasium. Registration will be from 8 to 10:30 a.m.
       Wheeler will be available to answer questions from consumers at 9 a.m. The business meeting begins at 11 a.m.
       “This year we don’t have any elections, no bylaw changes. The only thing we will have if we have a quorum is reports and approval of the two previous year’s minutes. That’s pretty much it,” Wheeler said about the schedule.
       However, if the Trigo fire has not been contained by Saturday, according to Wheeler, and the smoke from the fire spreads, causing the annual meeting to be cancelled, CNME will put announcements on television about the cancellation.
       The PRC has issued two orders regarding CNME. The first is a suspension of Advice Notice 55 concerning Rate 25, a planned reduction in off-peak hours.
       An Advice Notice must be filed with the PRC for rate changes proposed by a cooperative.
       The second PRC order begins two investigations. The first is into Advice Notice 54, a proposal by CNME to cancel Rate 29, a commercial time-of-use rate. The second investigation is focused on Rate 25, a residential time-of-use rate.
       The co-op plans to publish notice of the new Advice Notice 56 in the Enchantment, the co-op’s monthly magazine, in May.
       But the PRC has no plans to put the new Advice Notice into effect that soon, said Paul Carbajal , public information officer.
       Advice Notice 56 makes revisions to the existing Rate 25 proposing changes in the peak and off-peak hours, according to a March 28 PRC press release.
       “The new motions filed by the utility cooperative seem to address many of the major concerns in Case 08-00025-UT which CNME is asking to be dismissed,” states the release.
       Although Advice Notice 55 has been withdrawn, that does not mean that one of the three PRC investigations has been cancelled, Carbajal said.
       “This is an investigation into Rate 25, the time-of-use rate for residents. (CNME is) still being held accountable,” Carbajal said.
       Comparing several New Mexico co-op rates, that all buy power from Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association of Colorado, before franchise fees and taxes:
       n CNME serves almost 14,500 consumers, owns 4,330 miles of distribution line, and has invested $95.1 million.
       The majority of CNME residential customers, using 600 kwh per month, pay a total of $94.95, said Dolores Jones, manager of administrative services.
       n Otero County Electric serves almost 13,118 consumers, owns 2,529 miles of distribution line, and has invested $58.5 million.
       An average residential customer using 600 kwh per month pays a total of $73.62, said Carroll Waggoner, general manager.
       n Socorro Electric serves 13,056 consumers, owns 3,276 miles of distribution line, and has invested $49.5 million.
       An average residential consumer using 600 kwh per month pays $64.50, said Leopoldo Pineda, general manager.
       n Kit Carson Electric serves 21,998 consumers, owns 2,578 miles of distribution line, and has invested $96.3 million.
       An average residential customer using approximately 400 to 500 kwh per month pays $60, said Lynda Martinez, a customer service representative.
   

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