Maine regulators, consumer representatives and industrialcustomers are seeking a stay of a FERC order directing the NewEngland ISO to raise its ICAP deficiency charge to $8.75 per kW/Mretroactive to Aug. 1. The current charge is 17 cents.

This “fifty-fold increase in ICAP deficiency charges — imposedretroactively — was improvidently ordered by the Commission andwill, unless stayed, cause irreparable harm [amounting to] millionsof dollars to Maine consumers,” the Maine Public UtilitiesCommission, Maine Public Advocate and Industrial Energy ConsumersGroup said in an emergency motion [EL00-62-015].

For starters, they contend the Commission’s Dec. 15 order, whichrequires the New England ISO to file the increase in deficiencycharge by Dec. 30, “violates the rules against retroactiveratemaking and is unlawful.” Moreover, they argued it was”illogical” of FERC to adopt a deficiency charge that “exceeds byorders of magnitude the market prices it found [to be] excessive.”They also disputed FERC’s contention that the higher charge wouldact as a better deterrent against ICAP deficiencies in the regionalmarket and would encourage investment in generating capacity.

Such a penalty “threatens irreparable harm to consumers inMaine,” and “makes absolutely no sense when inflicted on Maine’sload-serving entities, who have no generation investment at all,”said the state regulators, consumer reps and industrial consumers.

At best, the increased ICAP deficiency charge “manifests adiscouraging indifference to local and regional differences incircumstances and policy and, if uncorrected, threatens theregulatory and political consensus supporting the Commission’spro-competitive objectives,” they noted.

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