Critical Peak Pricing Rate Options

Transcription

1 Critical Peak Pricing Rate Options (CPP) Questions and Answers PROGRAM OVERVIEW Southern California Edison s (SCE) Critical Peak Pricing (CPP) rate options may benefit commercial and industrial customers who can reduce or shift their power out of the summer season noon to 6:00 p.m. time period during a CPP event. Energy rates during summer season CPP events are significantly higher than energy rates during summer season non-cpp events. However, customers on a CPP schedule receive other electricity charge reduction benefits in return. Overall, by participating on a CPP rate, customers can assist in alleviating potential power shortages as well as lower their operating costs. SCE offers the CPP-VCD (Volumetric Charge Discount) rate to most Bundled Service customers with demands greater than 200 kilowatts (kw), and the CPP-GCCD (Generation Capacity Charge Discount) rate to TOU-8 rate schedule Bundled Service customers who have a maximum demand greater than 500 kw. BENEFITS TO YOU What are the benefits of participating on a CPP rate? There are several benefits to selecting a CPP rate: 1. Lower your operating costs: CPP-VCD offers reduced on-peak and year-round mid-peak energy rates for all non-cpp usage. CPP-GCCD offers significantly reduced summertime on-peak and mid-peak demand (kw) charges to benefit customers with large on-peak usage. 2. Take advantage of the Bill Protection Incentive, which ensures that for the first 12 months new CPP customers participate in the program, they will not be charged an electricity rate higher than the non-cpp rate they transferred from prior to joining the program. 3. Have the opportunity to receive a $19.50 per month incentive credit for SCE Cost Manager, which offers near-real-time energy use management, for the first 12 months on CPP. 4. Utilize Technical Assistance and Technology Incentives for professional technical assistance and the installation of approved equipment to help you reduce power use during demand response events. These incentives are not program-specific. ELIGIBILTY Am I eligible for the CPP program? SCE s CPP-VCD program is available to most customers with demands greater than 200 kw who rely on SCE for generation, transmission and distribution of electric service (Bundled Service customers). Eligible customers include those currently on the following rates: TOU-8, TOU-GS-2 or GS-2 with the Time-of-Use pricing option.

2 The CPP-GCCD (Generation Capacity Charge Discount) rate is available to Bundled Service customers who are currently served under the TOU-8 rate schedule and who have a maximum demand greater than 500 kw. These customers can participate in either the CPP-VCD or the CPP-GCCD. Direct Access customers are not currently eligible for any CPP service. SCE-approved interval metering and a primary phone line capable of receiving CPP event notification are required prior to participation. I have more than one meter. Can I still participate in the CPP program? Under certain circumstances, if additional meters are located at one customer site, one or all of the customer s meters may also be served under a CPP rate. PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS Are there any program requirements for participating in CPP? Yes. In addition to meeting the eligibility requirements for the program as detailed in the tariffs, as a participant in the CPP you automatically grant the California Energy Commission, or its contracted agents, authorization to conduct any site visits for program measurement and evaluation, and also agree to complete any program surveys. How long does a customer have to stay on the CPP program? Customers must remain on the applicable CPP rate for a minimum of 12 months. After participating in the program for 12 months, customers can opt off at anytime. New CPP customers participating in the Bill Protection Incentive must stay on the rate for 12 months to receive the benefits of the incentive. MULTIPLE PROGRAM PARTICIPATION Can I participate in other Demand Response Programs while on a CPP rate? Yes. There are other Demand Response Programs you can participate in while on a CPP rate, including SCE s Demand Bidding Program (DBP) and the California Demand Reserves Partnership (Cal-DRP), as applicable. But customers are ineligible to receive credit on the DBP or Cal-DRP during a CPP event. Can I be on SCE s interruptible programs and the CPP at the same time? No. CPP customers may not participate in any interruptible program (for example, I-6 or TOU-BIP), the Optional Binding Mandatory Curtailment Program or the Summer Discount Plan. Schedule S (Standby) rate customers also are not eligible to participate in CPP. CRITICAL PEAK EVENTS When and how often will the CPP be activated? A CPP event can only be activated during SCE s summer season between noon and 6:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. There are a maximum of 12 CPP events per summer season, including up to four test events. When is SCE s summer season? The summer season begins at midnight the first Sunday in June and continues until midnight the first Sunday in October of each year. How is a CPP event activated? SCE will notify participants when a CPP event is warranted. There are a number of triggers that may activate a CPP event, including high system peak demand and/or low generation reserves, high wholesale electricity market prices, Los Angeles Civic Center temperature registering at least 87 degrees by 2:00 p.m., or SCE s discretion. If necessary, SCE will Critical Peak Pricing Rate Options 2

3 adjust the temperature trigger threshold up or down on a bi-monthly basis to achieve the CPP program design basis of 12 events per summer season. EVENT NOTIFICATION When will I be notified of a CPP event? SCE will attempt to notify you the day before a CPP event of the opportunity to reduce or eliminate peak power usage (between noon and 6:00 p.m. the following day). SCE will begin notifying you via your designated primary telephone line by 3:00 p.m. the day before the event. If SCE cannot reach you on the first attempt, it will make at least two additional notification attempts on the primary line. SCE cannot and does not guarantee actual receipt of any notification. Are there other ways to receive notification of a CPP event? Yes. In addition to the notification via your designated primary telephone line, courtesy notifications via alphanumeric pager, cellular telephone, or by fax can be arranged. All equipment needed to receive notifications is at your expense. What do I do when I am notified of a CPP event? The choice of how to respond to a CPP event is yours; however, if you choose not to reduce your electricity use during a CPP event, you will pay a higher per kilowatt-hour (kwh) price for power used. CPP-GCCD customers may benefit from the dramatic reduction in the summer season on-peak and mid-peak demand charges, and those who reduce usage during CPP events can maintain that benefit by avoiding high CPP energy charges. Participating customers on both CPP rates are responsible for all charges incurred during a CPP event, even if the customers do not receive actual notice. CPP-VCD Pricing Periods Noon to Energy charges are about three times 3:00 p.m. the standard rate schedule, mid-peak energy charge 3:00 p.m. to Energy charges are about eight times 6:00 p.m. the standard rate schedule, on-peak energy charge CPP-GCCD Pricing Period Noon to The otherwise applicable time-related 6:00 p.m. on-peak demand charge gets converted into an energy charge: During a CPP period, the kwh energy charge is about 14 times higher than it is for regular TOU-8 customers in the summer on-peak period EQUIPMENT Do I need special equipment? Yes. To participate in a CPP program, you must have an SCE-approved communicating interval metering system capable of recording usage in 15-minute intervals and in operation for at least 10 non-holiday days before you join CPP. For accounts with demands greater than 200 kw*, SCE will provide such a meter at no charge. For associated accounts with demands less than 200 kw, customers must purchase an SCEapproved interval meter. Also, a designated primary phone line capable of receiving CPP event notifications is required. Internet access to the CPP Web site is not required, but recommended. *Account must exceed 200 kw three times in the last 12 months. Critical Peak Pricing Rate Options 3

4 REPORTS Can I view my power usage? Yes. CPP customers may take advantage of SCE Cost Manager (an application within the SCE EnergyManager Web site). You will receive a user ID and password so you can log onto and click on User Reports, allowing you to view potential power reduction. (You also can access the Web site by going to and clicking on the gold Registered Users box.) If you have any questions regarding the Web site, you can send an to drp@sce.com. What reports are available to CPP customers? CPP participants have access to a number of reports, including: 1) Previous Seven Day Energy Usage, 2) Previous Seven Super Peak Days, 3) Average Responsiveness to Super Peak Events, 4) Scenario Comparison (total costs under the CPP rate and a participant s non-cpp normal rate schedule, or Otherwise Applicable Tariff), and 5) Billing Charges. Is there a charge associated with SCE Cost Manager? New CPP customers who enroll in SCE Cost Manager can receive a $19.50 per month Cost Manager incentive credit, which is available for 12 months from CPP program enrollment. INCENTIVES What are the Technical Assistance and Technology Incentives? These incentives are no longer program-specific and are available for professional technical assistance and the installation of approved equipment to help customers reduce power use during demand response events. For more information, contact your account representative or call (626) What is the Bill Protection Incentive? New enrollees on a CPP rate may take advantage of the Bill Protection Incentive, which must be selected within 30 days of starting CPP service. This incentive ensures that, for the first 12 months a customer participates on a CPP rate, it will not be charged an energy rate higher than its Otherwise Applicable Tariff (OAT), meaning the non-cpp rate schedule it transferred from prior to joining the program (as long as the customer meets certain minimum performance standards). If a customer leaves the CPP rate before the end of the 12-month commitment, it will not receive bill protection for any month it participated. Bill protection benefits are computed on a cumulative basis at the end of the bill protection period. That means if the actual bills on the CPP rate are higher than they would have been on the customer s normal non-cpp rate schedule, the customer will receive a bill credit (following the end of the bill protection period) equal to the difference between what the customer pays under the CPP rate and what the customer would have paid on its original rate. If the monthly charges on the CPP rate are lower than they would have been on the customer s normal non- CPP rate schedule, the customer will keep those savings, and so will not receive any further bill protection incentive credit. After the 12-month bill protection period, the customer will pay the applicable CPP rate as long as it stays on the CPP program. Critical Peak Pricing Rate Options 4

5 FOR MORE INFORMATION How do I sign up? Call your SCE account representative for more information on how to change your rate. If you do not have an SCE account representative, call the CPP Hotline at (626) Where can I get additional information? To monitor your monthly power usage, log onto the designated CPP Web site at You also can access the Web site by going to and clicking on the gold Registered Users box. You will need to register and SCE will supply you with a user ID and password. There is no charge for registration and access. For additional information on the CPP rate options, contact your SCE account representative, visit type in to go directly to the SCE Demand Response Programs Web site, or call the CPP hotline at (626) SCE also has several programs available to help customers better manage their electricity costs, such as rebates, incentives, energy surveys and payment options. If you have questions about other SCE programs, call (800) * This Q&A is meant to be an aid to understanding SCE s pricing schedules. It does not replace the tariffs. Please refer to the individual rate schedule of interest for a complete listing of terms and conditions of service, which can be viewed online at CPPQA-0705 Critical Peak Pricing Rate Options 5