In late March, we posted about the Maryland Public Service Commission’s request for comments on a draft “Retail Supplier Load Shaping RFP” in the Public Conference 44 proceeding. In early April, comments were filed by the Maryland Energy Administration, the Retail Energy Supply Association, Direct Energy Services, Inc., Staff of the Maryland Public Service Commission, Baltimore Gas and Electric Company/Potomac Electric Power Company/Delmarva Power & Light Company, the Maryland Office of People’s Counsel, and CleanChoice Energy, Inc.
Parties encouraged the Commission to adopt an RFP process to maximize supplier participation, protect trade secrets, provide suppliers flexibility in their load shaping pilot proposals, and allow expanded billing options to enable suppliers to bring innovative proposals to the table. Some parties specifically pointed to supplier consolidated billing and on-bill financing as important tools to pair with supplier time-of-use electricity supply offerings within the pilot. Commenting suppliers noted some key improvements to the RFP structure as compared to a prior retail supplier time-of-use pilot design. However, suppliers also recommended that the Commission add options for marketing support for the retail supplier load shaping pilot offering to help get the word out about the program and encourage customer participation.
Additional recommendations addressed promoting use of renewable energy, access to historical usage data, expanded opportunities for net metering customers, and modifications to other program criteria. Suppliers also raised concerns about certain requirements that may discourage some suppliers from submitting bids to participate in the pilot program. The Office of People’s Counsel commented on the importance of minimizing the costs to both participating and non-participating consumers, ensuring adequate consumer protections, incentives structures, billing, and other issues. All of the comments were filed on April 9, 2019, and as of this post, we are waiting for further action from the Commission in response to the comments.
If you have questions or would like more information about Maryland Retail Supplier Load Shaping RFP or other regulatory issues, please contact Eric Wallace or any of our mid-Atlantic energy lawyers.
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