Over the past several months many Spencerport Municipal Electric (SME) customers have received electric bills that appear higher than usual. While there are several reasons for this, one item that stands out is the amount of the monthly PPAC. (Purchase Power Adjustment Charge).
SME has long term contracts with NYPA (New York Power Authority) that provide us a monthly allocation of 12 megawatts of low cost hydro power. While this allocation is secured under contract, the actual monthly amount of hydro energy power is predetermined 12 months in advance. Power across New York State for municipalities and all utilities is forecasted based on monthly historical consumption from previous years. Heating degree days, load factor percentage, system load and weather conditions are all integrated in a very complex energy scheduling system.
Unfortunately our customers see fluctuations with monthly bills when we experience a swing from a warm winter back to a typical cold winter.
For example, as we look back at the 2012 winter, especially the month of March, it was very cold through the 5th; however by the 7th, it warmed to 54 degrees and stayed significantly warm for the balance of the month. Consequently this resulted with an unusually low system electric load for that particular month. That system electric load then becomes the new forecasted hydro energy amount for March 2013. As we saw, this past March was much colder, so as a result, we exceeded our hydro allocation limit and were forced to purchase supplemental power at a higher rate. In summary, that is the reason for the additional amount charged with the PPAC.
We understand that recent events caused some hardship with household monthly budgets. The good news is that SME will receive normal winter hydro allocations for next year. Overall our customers still have some of the lowest electric rates in all of New York. Not only does SME continue to work closely with our municipal agencies securing long term low cost supplemental power, we also look for methods of energy conservation and encourage our customers to do the same.
Owen McIntee, Electric Superintendent
Village of Spencerport
