Intermountain Gas Co. has asked the Idaho Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to temporarily interrupt service to its customers using natural gas-fired snow-melting equipment during times when natural gas demand is peaking. The utility did not specify how many of its current 305,000 retail gas utility customers potentially could be affected.

The PUC said it will accept stakeholder and general public comments on the gas utility’s proposal through Dec. 23.

Gas-fired snow-melting equipment uses relatively large chunks of natural gas, and thus the utility thinks it can better manage peak-load situations if it has the authority to curtail supplies for snow-melting at certain times. “During days when gas is at peak use, the snow-melt equipment has the potential to impact service to other customers,” Intermountain said in its PUC filing.

Basically, the utility wants to shave and smooth its peak-load volumes as a means of keeping its operating costs down. Intermountain claims the snow-melt customers use large amounts of gas for only a few days or weeks during the winter, so it creates an inefficient use of the company’s distribution system and does not allow for cost recovery for maintaining the larger all-year capacity when it is only used for a relatively few days annually.

Intermountain has proposed to the PUC that it be allowed to establish interruptible service for new residential and business customers or existing customers installing gas-fired snow-melt equipment; those already operating snow-melt equipment are being contacted by the utility to sign voluntary agreements allowing interruption after notification by the utility.

“The utility believes the interruptions will not be long, but will depend on weather and snowfall conditions,” a PUC spokesperson said.

Under the utility proposal, all new snow-melt applications would require individual meters installed at the customer’s expense and would be separate from the traditional meters tracking gas service for other uses at residences and businesses. At its discretion, Intermountain would manually or remotely turn off all snow-melt meters in affected regions in which the system’s ability to meet all other gas deliveries was in question.

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