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Thread: Why?

  1. #1
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    Default Why?

    Seriously. I would like to hear your opinion on just why every energy provider always turns out to be run by shitheels. What is it about the sector that attracts those with the lowliest sense of community and service in a pure and vital service industry? They always act like the big kid who has failed 3rd grade twice and sees all of his fellow students as nothing more than targets for his own selfish interests. It really is getting tiresome. From our local Co-ops to major corporate providers. Nothing but stink, grift, and shit on your fellow countrymen...

    Utility tries to block people from speaking at solar hearing in SC. Higher fees loom.

    BY SAMMY FRETWELL
    MARCH 12, 2021


    Dominion Energy wants to stop nearly two dozen people from speaking about the company’s plan to impose extra costs on South Carolina residents who use solar power to save money.

    In a letter to the state Public Service Commission this week, Dominion said 23 people who have signed up to speak at a March 23 solar cost hearing should be disqualified because the company can’t find evidence they are Dominion electricity customers.

    Some of those people Dominion wants to keep from talking appear to be affiliated with solar energy companies, the company says. The solar hearing later this month is for Dominion customers only, utility attorney Matthew Gissendanner said in the March 10 letter.

    “The company’s research of publicly available information indicates that many individuals with these same names are affiliated with the solar industry ... as CEOs, sales managers, sales specialists, and warehouse specialists, or with entities that profit or fundraise off of the solar industry,’’ the letter said.

    Unless the 23 people in question are willing to swear under oath they get power from Dominion, they should not speak at the hearing, the company’s letter said. Gissendanner’s letter said Sunrun, a leading solar energy company, may have as many as four people scheduled to testify who do not have a Dominion account.

    The Public Service Commission, or PSC, will hold a hearing March 22 to consider whether anyone should be barred from speaking at the March 23 public hearing, the commission said Friday.

    If the PSC agrees with Dominion and bars the 23 from speaking, 59 other people who have requested to talk at the hearing would still be allowed to make comments. Also, others can still sign up before March 23, according to the PSC.

    “It is important that this public hearing serves the purpose intended, and that is to give our customers an opportunity to be heard,’’ Dominion spokeswoman Rhonda O’Banion said in an email Friday. “Others with an interest in this matter had the opportunity to intervene during the regulatory process.’’

    Dominion’s request is the latest in a closely watched case pending before the PSC over whether Dominion can impose additional costs on customers who use a combination of solar energy and traditional electricity.

    Utility customers who also have solar panels on their roofs can lower their monthly power bills, but Dominion says non-solar customers are subsidizing solar energy users.

    Solar companies say the subsidy is a minuscule cost for non-solar customers and Dominion’s arguments are a smokescreen by the company to chill sun power, seen by some as a threat to utilities in South Carolina. Adding costs will negate the savings solar customers now get, critics say. The plan applies mostly to future rooftop solar customers, although it could affect some existing customers later this decade.

    In addition to lower costs for customers, solar panels provide a non-polluting way of making electricity, say sun power boosters. The state has been trying to expand the solar market after years of being one of the most unfriendly environments in the country for sun power.

    Dominion’s effort to limit public comments didn’t go over well with some state legislators or people who would be banned from speaking. While some solar companies are involved in the case before the PSC, others were not part of the proceedings and did not speak.

    “I don’t understand the harm that would be done by having more information and more perspective shared with the commissioners,’’ state Rep. Micah Caskey said.

    Caskey, R-Lexington, said Dominion is a monopoly utility that needs scrutiny from the PSC and the public, particularly when it involves the use of new forms of energy that would supplant or supplement traditional energy sources. More voices on company energy plans aren’t a bad thing, he said.

    “You should be very skeptical of anything that looks like an institutional effort to cement its legacy practices in the midst of a shift in the power generation paradigm — very, very skeptical,’’ said Caskey, a leading critic of SCE&G, the local utility Virginia-headquartered Dominion acquired after a failed nuclear project soaked customers for billions of dollars.

    Like Caskey, state Sen. Nikki Setzler, D-Lexington, said he had not heard about Dominion’s request until informed by The State. But, Setzler said, “normally people would interpret a public hearing as a hearing where any member of the public can come in.’’

    Sunrun’s Tyson Grinstead called Dominion’s effort to limit public speaking unfortunate. He said there has been no coordinated effort by Sunrun to have people speak at the hearing, but he doesn’t see the harm in providing information that could help the PSC make a decision. Solar businesses know in detail the flaws in Dominion’s plan, he said. Sunrun was not a participant in the solar case, he said.

    “Anybody who has a vested interest in this ought to have a right to speak,’’ Grinstead said. “Those who sell solar are the ones who are going to know the impact the economics are to the customers they sell to, especially these companies that have been in business for a long time in South Carolina that have really been trying to work to grow the industry.’’

    Among those is a solar company owned by Bruce Wood, a Greenville-area businessman who Dominion said should not speak at the hearing. Wood is considered one of the pioneers of solar energy in South Carolina. He first got started selling solar water heaters in the 1970s and now sells solar energy systems across the state.

    Wood declined comment when reached by The State.

    But Andrew Streit, who founded the S.C. Solar Business Alliance, had plenty to say.

    Streit said the company’s request to the PSC is an attempt to “push people around.’’ He wants to speak at the hearing about how solar has become a viable source of energy, despite claims by utility supporters more than 15 years ago that sun power is not worthwhile.

    “It’s ridiculous,’’ said Streit, who also would be blocked from speaking if the PSC sides with Dominion. “This is a hearing about solar. I wonder who did this? That is just cold. I’m really disappointed.’’

    Streit said he has no stake in the fight over rooftop solar because he is a business developer for commercial-scale systems in the northeast. But he said he supports the expansion of rooftop solar for homeowners in South Carolina.

    He also noted that “Dominion isn’t even a South Carolina corporation. Tell them we need their birth certificates.’’

    The S.C. Office of Regulatory Staff declined to take a position on whether public comment should be limited to Dominion customers only. A key question is whether all who are seeking to speak have an interest in the matter, the agency said Friday.

    Until the PSC considers whether only customers can speak, the commission still is taking requests to talk at the March 23 hearing. To sign up, send an email to COMMUNICATIONS@PSC.SC.GOV or call 803-896-5133.

    https://www.thestate.com/news/local/...ainstage_card4

  2. #2
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    Those interested in making easy money are usually shitty people.

  3. #3
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    Not sure I disagree with Dominions take here. They should listen to their rate payers voices. Bussing people from up north to come speak about their personal interest is no different than Dominion silencing their rate payers to make more money. No different than BLM bussing in protesters and their were plenty on here that didn’t support that.

  4. #4
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    Default Why?

    Because when you are used to working in an industry that allows you monopolies and 0 competitors, you tend to get upset when the serfs, aka customers dare ask you a question. Shut up and pay.


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    Last edited by union; 03-21-2021 at 05:55 PM.

  5. #5
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    My Dominion gas bill has almost doubled in the last 3 years.

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  6. #6
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    Electrons don't bend to public pressure - unfortunately boards of directors do. 30 years ago utilities were flush with competence. Slowly they marginalized competence and promoted popular.
    Ephesians 2 : 8-9



    Charles Barkley: Nobody doesn't like meat.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Catdaddy View Post
    My Dominion gas bill has almost doubled in the last 3 years.

    Sent from my moto z4 using Tapatalk


    You didn't think they'd want their money back that they spent to acquire SCANA.

  8. #8
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    Could be an issue like this? Then Duke's rate hikes back to back to pay for their coal
    Ash debacle.

    https://www.postandcourier.com/uncov...ca50c06e3.html

  9. #9
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    If you look deep enough you will find a politician involved somewhere. Seems to be the common denominator to the level of "phucked upness" this country is in. That and the media.

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by union View Post
    Because when you are used to working in an industry that allows you monopolies and 0 competitors, you tend to get upset when the serfs, aka customers dare ask you a question. Shut up and pay.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    Saved me the trouble of typing.

  11. #11
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    I used to be amazed by the Regulatory model that created and supported the business of electric supply but what I didn't realize is that the model only works when Regulators and Utility Management were both mature and competent. There is little of that left now and the unregulated markets run by Adam Smith's invisible hand seem to be better managed as long as the politics of global warming stay out of things.
    Ephesians 2 : 8-9



    Charles Barkley: Nobody doesn't like meat.

  12. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rubberhead* View Post
    I used to be amazed by the Regulatory model that created and supported the business of electric supply but what I didn't realize is that the model only works when Regulators and Utility Management were both mature and competent. There is little of that left now and the unregulated markets run by Adam Smith's invisible hand seem to be better managed as long as the politics of global warming stay out of things.
    Perks, parachutes, and personal gain. Everything else comes way down the trough and we have seen in CA and TX what it leads to. Our own nuclear debacle of greed and incompetence will not be solved. A price beyond rate hikes will be paid...

  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by JABIII View Post
    Perks, parachutes, and personal gain. Everything else comes way down the trough and we have seen in CA and TX what it leads to. Our own nuclear debacle of greed and incompetence will not be solved. A price beyond rate hikes will be paid...
    Yep - the money is spent. Someone's gotta pay.
    Ephesians 2 : 8-9



    Charles Barkley: Nobody doesn't like meat.

  14. #14
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    North Carolina Rolls Over For Duke Energy
    Is South Carolina next?

    Published 4 hours ago on June 16, 2021By Will Folks

    The state of North Carolina is rolling out a new energy bill that aligns almost precisely with the objectives of Charlotte-based Duke Energy, a major regional power provider that is under fire for its dubious energy projections.

    And for the extent to which it effectively owns the N.C. General Assembly …

    Duke has been leveraging these relationships as it stares down a potential hostile takeover – one which prompted the utility to tap its network of bought-and-paid-for politicians in both North and South Carolina for public shows of support last month.

    The North Carolina legislation – House Bill 951 – “is generally consistent with the electric public utilities’ current integrated resource plan,” according to its text.

    That’s a reference to this plan – which could put ratepayers on the hook for billions of dollars worth of “stranded assets” as Duke struggles to balance its excessive reliance on environmentally unfriendly coal-fired power with its promises of a cleaner energy future. How much in “stranded assets?” Nearly $5 billion, according to a recent report.

    Wait, though … are North Carolina lawmakers really okay with that?

    Also, are they really okay with imposing new, multi-year rate hikes that could artificially boost corporate profits by essentially allowing Duke to “double up” on incentives tied to its system enhancements?

    Because that’s in this bill, too …

    Duke has vowed to be “carbon neutral” by 2050, but achieving this lofty goal means investing extensively in short-term natural gas infrastructure – the cost of which the utility intends to “recover” from ratepayers. That means the shorter the shelf life of these natural gas assets, the more hard-earned cash ratepayers will be forced to shell out for them.

    This irreconcilable math (and other issues) prompted analysts to downgrade Duke recently – but it hasn’t stopped Tar Heel State politicians from asking “how high” whenever the utility tells them to “jump.”

    In fact, on this legislation it certainly appears as though the legislative sponsors are mere pass-throughs … puppets, if you will.

    “Duke did a lot of the writing here,” an opponent of the legislation told reporter John Downey of The Charlotte Business Journal. “I can’t think of anything (in the bill) that Duke opposed.”

    The new legislative offensive comes a month after Duke was forced to play defense in response to a letter circulated by Elliott Management Corporation – one of the company’s ten largest investors. This letter explicitly rebuked the utility’s current leadership for its failure to generate adequate returns, saying ” top-tier results have proven elusive for Duke.”

    Its proposed fix? Breaking up the company “into three focused sets of regionally clustered utilities.”

    Duke provides power to an estimated 7.4 million Americans in Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, North Carolina and South Carolina. It provides natural gas to an estimated 1.5 million customers in Kentucky, Ohio, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. More than a third of its customers are located in the Carolinas.

    Many have suggested the Elliot Management proposal to break up the utility is part of an attempted takeover of Duke by Florida-based NextEra Energy – which is said to be eagerly eying the company’s Florida subsidiary.

    NextEra – the nation’s largest energy company – also mounted a push recently to acquire the Palmetto State’s catastrophically mismanaged government-run utility, Santee Cooper. However, state lawmakers in South Carolina foolishly opted to allow politicians (and their appointees) to continue pulling the strings of this debt-addled albatross.

    Which, readers will recall, is a demonstrably bad idea …

    Duke’s influence over the North Carolina legislature comes at a time when it is struggling to repair relations with lawmakers and regulators in South Carolina following a disastrous rate hike process in 2019. Duke raised monthly costs on its Upstate South Carolina residential customers by 3.7 percent that year – and jacked rates on its customers in the Pee Dee region of the state by 6.3 percent.

    By contrast, Virginia-based Dominion Energy – which recently acquired South Carolina-based SCANA – withdrew its request for a rate hike in 2021 owing to economic concerns associated with the coronavirus pandemic.

    FITSnews

  15. #15
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    We had backed to back rate hikes. Few show up to the public meetings.

    Their coal ash and nuclear plant is on par with Jenkinsville.

    It is unbelievably the GA kicked SCANA down the road again while out real estate shopping.

    They have to be waiting for a federal bailout.

  16. #16
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    NextEra Energy (FP&L) is making a run at Duke. I doubt it ever happens but FP&L made the offer a few months ago.

  17. #17
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    They will get as much as they want when Elliott breaks it up for parts...

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