Orders

IN THE MATTER OF

the Utilities Commission Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, Chapter 473

and

an Application by FortisBC Energy Inc.
for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity
for the Huntingdon Station Bypass

BEFORE:               Alison Rhodes, Commissioner                                        November 15, 2013

O R D E R

WHEREAS:

A.      On October 25, 2013, FortisBC Energy Inc. (FEI) applied to the British Columbia Utilities Commission (Commission) for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) to construct a bypass pipeline around FEI’s Huntingdon Flow and Pressure Control Station (Huntingdon Station) (Project), pursuant to sections 45 and 46 of the Utilities Commission Act (UCA) (Application);

B.      FEI requests approval, under sections 59 to 61 of the UCA, for deferral treatment of the Application and prefeasibility costs, estimated at $573,000, and to amortize these costs over a three year period;

C.      The Project has two main components:

1.       Construction of a new Nominal Pipe Size (NPS) 36 (inch) transmission pressure bypass pipeline; and

2.       Installation of an in-line pressure control valve and four isolation valves to tie into the existing FEI NPS 30 and NPS 42 pipelines, and to tie into the existing Westcoast Energy Inc. pipeline (doing business as Spectra Energy Transmission) adjacent to the Huntingdon Station;

D.      FEI proposes to start construction of the Project in May 2015 and be in-service by October 2015;

E.       FEI estimates the capital cost of the Project to be approximately $8.0 million including Allowance for Funds Used During Construction (AFUDC);

F.       FEI also requests that detailed information relating to equipment risk assessments and Project cost estimates for material and construction work be treated as confidential to maintain FEI’s ability to negotiate contracts for the construction of the Project and to maintain public safety; and

G.      The Commission has determined that a written public hearing is necessary for the review of the Application.

NOW THEREFORE the Commission orders as follows:

1.    A Written Hearing Process for review of the Application in accordance with the Preliminary Regulatory Timetable attached as Appendix A to this Order is hereby established.

2.    The British Columbia Utilities Commission (Commission) considers FortisBC Energy Inc.’s (FEI) request for confidentiality is reasonably necessary to protect FEI’s business interests and to maintain public safety.  The Commission will hold detailed information related to equipment risk assessments and Project cost estimates for material and construction work confidential.  Consumer group interveners may obtain access to this information by executing standard form undertakings of confidentiality.

3.    FEI must publish, within 7 days of the date of this Order, a Public Notice of the Written Hearing Process, in the form attached as Appendix B to this Order, in display-ad format, in the Vancouver Sun, the Province and other local and community news publications in the vicinity of Huntingdon Station that will provide reasonable notice to members of the public who may be affected by the Project.

4.    FEI must provide a copy of this Order to the City of Abbotsford, Spectra Energy Transmission, Williams Pipelines, affected landowners and all affected local First Nations communities, including those outlined in Appendices J4, J5 and J6 of the Application.

5.    The Application and supporting materials shall be made available to the public for inspection at FortisBC Energy Inc., 16705 Fraser Highway, Surrey, BC, at the British Columbia Utilities Commission, Sixth Floor, 900 Howe Street, Vancouver, BC, on the FortisBC Energy Utilities website at www.fortisbc.com and on the BCUC website at www.bcuc.com.

DATED at the City of Vancouver, in the Province of British Columbia, this          15^th          day of November 2013.

BY ORDER

                                                                                                                                            Original signed by:

Alison Rhodes

Commissioner

an Application by FortisBC Energy Inc.
for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity
for the Huntingdon Station Bypass

Preliminary REGULATORY TIMETABLE

Public Notice British Columbia Utilities Commission

 

 

 

           

FortisBC Energy Inc.

Application for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity

for the Huntingdon Station Bypass

Written Hearing Process

THE APPLICATION

On October 25, 2013, FortisBC Energy Inc. (FEI) applied to the British Columbia Utilities Commission (the Commission) for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (the Application) for the Huntingdon Station Bypass.  Huntingdon Station is located south of Abbotsford, BC approximately 3 km east of the Huntingdon, BC and Sumas, Washington border crossing.

The proposed bypass is intended to remove the Huntingdon Station as a single point of failure on the system and reduce the risk of loss of natural gas supply to customers downstream of the Huntingdon Station in the event of a Station shutdown.

The approximate location of the bypass route is shown on the map below.

THE REGULATORY PROCESS

Commission Order G-185-13 established a Regulatory Timetable for the review of the Application by way of a Written Public Hearing.

The Regulatory Timetable can be reviewed on the Commission’s website at www.bcuc.com>Current Applications>Huntingdon Bypass CPCN.

INTERVENTION

Persons wishing to actively participate in the proceeding must register as Interveners through the Commission’s website at www.bcuc.com by December 5, 2013.  In their registration, Interveners must identify the issues that they intend to pursue and indicate the extent of their anticipated involvement in the review process.  Interveners will each receive a copy of all non-confidential correspondence and filed documentation, and must provide an email address if available.  Parties must explain how their interests or their clients’ interests are affected and should be able to reference their interests with respect to the scope in the Application and Direction No. 4.

Persons not expecting to actively participate, but who have an interest in the proceeding, should register as Interested Parties through the Commission’s website or in writing, by December 5, 2013, identifying their interest in the proceeding.

By participating and/or providing comment on the Application, you agree that all submissions will be placed on the public record and posted on the Commission’s website. 

For more information on ways to get involved in the review, please visit www.bcuc.com and click “How to Get Involved” under “Quick Links” on the home page.

VIEW THE APPLICATION

The Application and supporting documentation are available on the Commission’s website on the “Current Applications” page.  If you would like to review the material in hard copy, it is available to be viewed at the locations below:

FURTHER INFORMATION

For more information or to register please contact Ms. Erica Hamilton, Commission Secretary using the contact information above.