(A) The electric curtailment rules for the municipal electric utility of the city, as set forth hereinafter and made a part hereof, are hereby adopted and approved insofar as they apply to electric distribution systems.
(B) The electric curtailment rules herein adopted and approved are hereby authorized to be filed with the Public Service Commission of Indiana for information purposes only, and so identified.
(C) Electric curtailment rules.
(1) Company load reduction during fuel shortages. This step will be taken by the utility when its fuel supplies are decreasing and the remaining fuel supplies are sufficient in its option for not more than approximately 50 days’ operation of its generation facilities.
(a) Utility use of electric energy will be reduced in any way that will not jeopardize essential operations.
(b) Fuel supply levels at the utility’s generating stations will become a determinant in economic dispatch decisions in the effort to maintain a reasonable supply of fuel at all generating stations.
(c) The utility will partially or fully terminate the availability of electric energy under the surplus capacity provisions of rates for industrial and commercial power service. This shall not apply to cooperative or municipal utilities with generation.
(2) Customer voluntary load reduction during fuel shortages. If fuel supplies continue to decrease and the utility’s remaining fuel supply is sufficient in its opinion for not more than 50 days’ operation of its generating facilities, appeals to users will be made for the voluntary curtailment of load. Efforts should be made to obtain a decrease in usage of approximately 25% except that a lesser amount would be the goal for specific customers if the 25% reduction would result in situations where health and safety is not adequately protected.
(a) Public appeals will be made by the utility through appropriate news media asking customers to reduce their use of electric energy by approximately 25% because of the impending fuel shortage.
(b) Direct appeals will be made by the utility to major industrial and commercial customers and to wholesale customers requesting them to shut off nonessential loads, and curtail usage in an effort to obtain a 25% reduction.
(3) Mandatory load reduction during fuel shortages. If fuel supplies continue to decrease and the utility’s remaining fuel supply is sufficient in its opinion for not more than 40 days’ operation of its generating facilities, mandatory curtailment will commence pursuant to divisions (C)(4) through (C)(12) below.
(4) Mandatory curtailment, limitation and priorities of service. When fuel supplies are sufficient for not more than 40 days’ operation of the utility’s generating facilities or when for any reason sufficient amount of electric power, in the judgment of the utility, are not available to the company to meet all existing and reasonably anticipated demands for service or to protect the integrity and stability of the system, the utility shall have the right to restrict, limit or curtail electric service within any of its systems so affected in accordance with any of the provisions of this rule.
(5) Definitions. For the purpose of this rule, the following terms shall have the following meanings.
BASE MONTHLY CONSUMPTION. The customer’s average billing month usage based upon the three-month period in the prior 12 months which corresponds to the billing month being curtailed and the immediately preceding and succeeding months. Adjustments may be made for customers with changed circumstances that have caused the prior year’s usage during the period to be nonrepresentative of current usage during the period.
COMMERCIAL CUSTOMERS. Customers engaged primarily in wholesale or retail trade and services including clubs, institutions and local, state and federal government agencies, except educational institutions.
DISPENSABLE USES.
1. The following and similar types of uses of electric energy shall be considered DISPENSABLE USES:
a. Outdoor flood and advertising lighting except for the minimum level necessary to protect life and property and a single illuminated sign identifying commercial facilities that are open after dark;
b. General lighting levels in stores and offices greater than minimum functional levels;
c. Show window and display lighting;
d. Greater number of elevators operating in office buildings during nonpeak hours than is necessary;
e. Parking lot lighting above minimum functional levels;
f. Energy use greater than that necessary to maintain a temperature of no less than 78° during operation of cooling equipment and no more than 65° during operation of heating equipment;
g. Greater than minimum work schedules, as for building cleaning and maintenance, restocking and the like, which would require office or industrial facilities to be illuminated, cooled or heated beyond normal working hours;
h. Nighttime sports and recreational activities; and
i. Public museums, art galleries and historic buildings requiring illumination, cooling or heating.
2. Any DISPENSABLE USE shall be provided the minimum amount of electricity to protect and maintain the dispensable use facilities.
HUMAN NEEDS CUSTOMERS. Includes hospitals, medical centers, nursing homes and customers where curtailment would adversely affect public health and safety such as municipal fire departments, police departments, civil defense and emergency Red Cross services, and any other facility whose use of electric energy is vital to public health and safety as determined by the utility.
INDUSTRIAL CUSTOMERS. Customers who are engaged primarily in a process that creates or changes raw or unfinished materials into another form or product.
LIVING QUARTERS. As used in Service Priority Class II, shall mean hotels, motels, dormitories and similar dwelling places.
RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMERS. Customers living in residential dwellings, mobile homes, apartments or condominiums.
SERVICE OBLIGATION. The largest metered demand (peak demand for customers served on industrial and commercial rates) in the previous 12 months. If no such demand information is available, an estimate will be used determined by dividing the KWH in the maximum usage month in the previous 12 months by 200 hours.
(6) Emergency curtailment without regard to priority. The utility reserves the right to order electric service curtailment without regard to the priority of service when in its judgment the curtailment is required to forestall imminent and irreparable injury to life, property or the electric system. Curtailment may include interruption of selected circuits. A curtailment pursuant to this rule shall not exceed 72 consecutive hours without approval of the Public Service Commission of Indiana.
(7) Priority of service. Priority of service, in the event of mandatory curtailment, shall be as set forth below. The highest priority is Service Priority Class I and the lowest priority of service is Service Priority Class V.
Service Priority | |
Class | |
I | Human needs |
II | Residential and living quarters |
III | Commercial and industrial customers |
IV | Schools, colleges, universities, and other educational institutions |
V | Dispensable uses and surplus capacity power |
(8) Mandatory curtailment procedure.
(a) Curtailment, unless pursuant to division (C)(6) above, shall begin with Service Priority Class V and continue as necessary through Service Priority Classes IV, III, II and I as follows:
1. When the utility’s fuel supply reaches 40 days, public notice, by press release, shall be given to Service Priority Class V customers to fully (100%) curtail the service;
2. When the utility’s fuel supply reaches 40 days, public notice shall be given to:
a. Service Priority Class IV to curtail service to a service level of not more than 50% of service obligation or base monthly consumption, whichever is applicable as determined by the utility;
b. Service Priority Class III to curtail service to a service level of not more than 75% of service obligation or base monthly consumption, whichever is applicable as determined by the utility; and
c. Service Priority Class II to curtail service to a service level of not more than 85% of service obligation or base monthly consumption, whichever is applicable as determined by the utility.
3. When the utility’s fuel supply reaches 30 days, public notice shall be given to:
a. Service Priority Class IV to curtail service fully to a service level that is necessary to protect and maintain Service Priority Class IV facilities;
b. Service Priority Class III to curtail service to a service level of not more than 50% of service obligation or base monthly consumption, whichever is applicable as determined by the utility; and
c. Service Priority Class II to curtail service to a service level of not more than 75% of service obligation or base monthly consumption, whichever is applicable as determined by the utility.
4. After Service Priority Classes IV, III and II are curtailed to a level of not more than indicated in division (C)(8)(a)3. above of service obligation or base monthly consumption, Service Priority Classes IV through II, both inclusive, will be further curtailed by equal percentages until full (100%) curtailment occurs.
5. After Service Priority Classes IV, III and II are in full (100%) curtailment, curtailment shall commence in service Priority Class I as necessary.
(b) Except as provided in division (C)(8)(a)1. above, the utility will give notice of curtailment in the most effective manner possible and as much in advance as possible with regard to the exigencies and the number of customers to be notified. The curtailment shall be effective as of the time and date specified in the notice.
(9) Curtailment by short-term service interruption. In the event mandatory curtailment is imposed, as above provided, the utility in addition may employ, for not more than two hours’ duration at any one time, selective short term service interruptions by operation on a rotational basis of distribution switching equipment to effect the necessary curtailment in one or more service priority classes.
(10) Restoration of service. Service shall be restored in the reverse order of the original curtailment.
(11) Penalty for noncompliance. Customers failing to comply with the specified curtailment for more than seven days will be subject to disconnection for the duration of the emergency. Energy use by industrial and large commercial customers in excess of that permitted under curtailment shall be subject to a $0.10 per KWH penalty, in addition to normal billing charges, for all electric energy taken in excess of mandatory curtailment limitations. Penalty charges collected hereunder shall be segregated in a separate account, and shall be applied to reduce the fuel cost adjustment charges of industrial and large commercial customers who, during the existence of a fuel emergency, have not used electric energy in excess of mandatory curtailment limitations.
(12) Applicability. The terms and provisions of this rule shall control notwithstanding any terms and provisions of rate schedules, general rules and regulations of the utility or any contract or agreement between the utility and any customer to the contrary.
(Prior Code, § 25-45) (Ord. 78-5, passed 2-16-1978)