The New York Public Service Commission has directed Consolidated Edison Co. to modify its gas transportation rates to more accurately reflect costs.
The commission said that the tariff revisions mark a "major step" for a service territory where competition between the utility and gas marketers had not yet developed. The rate modifications include:
• decreased "load following" charges for customers with high load factors for storage services used to meet daily swings in consumption;
• removal of stand-by service costs from the load-following charge and development of a separate surcharge for stand-by protection provided to "human needs" customers, such as residential and acute care health facilities;
• a commitment by the utility that it will allow sales customers to convert from sales to transportation service without assignment of the utility's associated upstream capacity; and