§ 57.31. Definitions.
The following words and terms, when used in this subchapter, have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
Avoided costs—The incremental costs to an electric utility of electric energy or capacity, or both, which, but for the purchase from the qualifying facility or qualifying facilities, the utility would generate itself or purchase from another source.
Back-up power—Electric energy or capacity supplied by an electric utility to replace energy or capacity ordinarily generated by a qualifying facility’s own generation equipment which equipment is not available during an unscheduled outage of the facility.
Capacity payment—A payment to a supplier of electric capacity by a purchasing utility as provided in § 57.34(c) (relating to purchases of energy and capacity).
Competitive bidding or auction or solicitation—An established procedure through which offers from qualifying facilities and other suppliers of electric generation or providers of demand-side management programs, or both, are solicited, obtained and selected in order to meet a specified need for electric capacity and associated energy.
DSM—demand-side management—Programs designed to influence use of electricity on the customer side of the meter.
EWG—exempt wholesale generator—Independent power producers and utility affiliated generators created under the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C.A. § 13201), and defined at 15 U.S.C.A. § 79z-5a(a), which sell power exclusively to wholesale power markets.
Energy payment—A payment to a qualifying facility by a purchasing utility for energy, as defined in § 57.34(b).
Independent power producer—An electric power supplier which is not a qualifying facility or a public utility.
Interconnection costs—The reasonable costs of connection, switching, metering, transmission, distribution, safety provisions and administration incurred by the electric utility directly related to the installation and maintenance of the physical facilities necessary to permit interconnection operations with a qualifying facility to the extent these costs are in excess of the corresponding costs which the electric utility would have incurred or charged to the entire customer base to serve the supplier of electric capacity if it had been a customer only.
Interruptible power—Electric energy or capacity supplied by an electric utility subject to interruption by the electric utility under specified conditions.
Maintenance power—Electric energy or capacity supplied by an electric utility during scheduled outages of the qualifying facilities.
Net generating capacity—The gross generation of a power plant minus all of the power that the plant consumes for internal uses.
Power Plant Life Extension Program—A utility program involving major capital investment in an existing baseload generating facility which will result in a continuation of the facility’s operation beyond its normal operating life.
Purchases—The buying of electric energy or capacity, or both, from a qualifying facility by an electric utility.
Qualifying facility—A cogeneration facility or a small power production facility which meets the criteria contained in 18 CFR Part 292 (relating to regulations under sections 201 and 210 of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 with regard to small power producers and cogenerators).
Rate—A price, rate, charge or classification made, demanded, observed or received with respect to the sale or purchase of electric energy or capacity; a rule, regulation or practice respecting a rate, charge or classification; and a contract pertaining to the sale or purchase of electric energy or capacity.
Sale—The selling of electric energy or capacity, or both, by an electric utility to a qualifying facility.
Short-term capacity purchase—A purchase of capacity and associated energy under a contract of not more than 5 years in duration.
Standard schedule—A tariff schedule available to small qualifying facilities as defined at § 57.34(f).
Supplementary power—Electric energy or capacity, supplied by an electric utility, regularly used by a qualifying facility in addition to that which the facility generates itself.
System emergency—A condition on a utility’s system which is likely to result in imminent significant disruption of service to customers or is imminently likely to endanger life or property.
Utility peak periods—The seasonal cost-causative peaks of the electric utility.
Source The provisions of this § 57.31 adopted February 25, 1946; amended through May 29, 1973; amended December 29, 1995, effective December 30, 1995, 25 Pa.B. 6085. Immediately preceding text appears at serial pages (195592) to (195593).
Notes of Decisions Application
The regulations found at 52 Pa. Code § § 57.31—57.39 govern only the purchase and sale of energy and energy capacity between public utilities and private ‘‘qualifying facilities’’ and have no application to the internal accounting methods of a utility which allocates cost of its facility generating both steam and electric power to only the steam consumers. University of Pennsylvania v. Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, 485 A.2d 1217 (Pa. Cmwlth. 1984).
Federal Requirements
The practical effect of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978, 16 U.S.C.A. § 824a-3, is to divert potential profits from regulated electric companies, whose earnings are largely based on the value of their owned facilities, to the owners of qualifying facilities. Pennsylvania Electric Co. v. Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, 677 A.2d 831 (Pa. 1996).
Notice
It was unlawful for the Commission to effect a substantive change to a prior opinion and order by applying a 15% limitation to interruptable as well as firm back-up power provided to utility’s self-generating customers without notice to the parties and full opportunity to be heard. Scott Paper Co. v. Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, 558 A.2d 914 (Pa. Cmwth. 1989).
Rate
Under section 1303 of the Code, 66 Pa.C.S. § 1303, the public utility must have actual knowledge of service conditions before it is required to compute the most favorable rate for its customers. Springfield Township v. Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, 676 A.2d 304 (Pa. Cmwlth. 1996).
Cross References This section cited in 52 Pa. Code § 57.145 (relating to qualifying facility and independent power producer).
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