CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Hope Gas is asking the Public Service Commission to allow it to increase rates to pay for replacing pipes in its system that are showing leaks.
The utility has requested a four percent increase in rates, about $4.37 a month for the average customer to pay for its Pipeline Replacement and Expansion Program (PREP).
The PSC began an evidentiary hearing on the request Wednesday.
Hope Gas Senior Director of Engineering, & Design Abraham Jones said increasing safety and reliability along 3,000 miles of natural gas lines are the top priorities.
“Right now, the main goal is to increase the reliability of that system and we’re doing that through identifying where those leaks are, where the highest emission leaks are, where those leaks impact customers the most and we’re risk-ranking those to replace those pipes,” Jones said.
There was testimony Wednesday about approximately 1,460 leaks along 1,650 miles of Hope Gas lines. Jones said he would like to see all of the leaks eliminated.
Hope Gas is in the initial stages of spending about $30 million a year on the program. Jones testified he believes the utility will know how well the program is going once more data comes in.
“I would say that as we get feedback from this year and next year that we can start to really make a good determination of what a successful year looks like,” Jones said. “I know where’s doing the right thing, the right system and then we can establish what those goals are.”
Jones said Hope Gas will have another aerial laser scanner survey of the lines, called a Bridger Flight, soon.
“We will see impacts of pipe that we replaced last year. We will see leaks go away. We may see other leaks pop-up but we will be able to design our program, adjust our program, to make the best use of that capital investment,” Jones said.
PSC Chairman Charlotte Lane asked Wednesday it was worth raising rates to take care of leaks.
“Is it cheaper for Hope’s customers to just allow those leaks to continue than it is to fix the leaks?”
Hope Gas President and CEO Morgan O’Brien told WAJR Radio in an interview last month that if approved residential customers would see an average monthly increase of $4.37, or 4.07 percent, and small commercial customers would have an increase of $11.47, or 3.33 percent. Larger commercial and industrial distribution customers would see increases in average monthly bills from $412.91 to $1,247.34.
“Grocery bills and all the other costs that hard-working families incur,” O’Brien said. “We don’t take lightly that this improvement costs capital, investment, and ultimately people see it in their bills.”
The PSC will hand down its on the order on the case at a later date.