Regulators in Maine have ordered one of the state’s investor-owned utilities, Central Maine Power, to pay $80,000 in legal fees to the advocacy group that fought its successful privatization push under a new law.
The payment will be made to Our Power, the same group that unsuccessfully attempted to replace Maine’s two investor-owned utilities with a new public power utility through a ballot referendum last year. It’s the first time the Maine Public Utilities Commission has exercised a new state law that forces utilities to pay some expenses incurred by intervenors in utility regulatory proceedings.
One Power opposed Spanish energy giant Iberdrola’s $2.5 billion effort to acquire the remaining outstanding shares in Avangrid, Central Maine Power’s parent company. In September, the Maine Public Utilities Commission granted Avangrid’s request to waive state approval requirements. The acquisition was previously approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and Avangrid shareholders.
According to the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners, sixteen states allow for some form of intervenor compensation in utility proceedings. The frameworks aim to offset the financial hardship experienced by small groups and consumer advocates, who are often unable to match a utility’s ratepayer-funded legal resources.
One Power requested that the Maine Public Utilities Commission require Central Maine Power shareholders, not its ratepayers, foot the bill for its expenses, according to the Portland Press Herald.
Avangrid and Iberdrola expect their transaction to close by the end of this year, subject to the satisfaction of other closing conditions, including approval from the New York Public Service Commission. However, Connecticut’s Attorney General isn’t convinced the deal should go through. Attorney General William Tong formally asked the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority to initiate a proceeding to review the deal.
Tong noted that Avangrid sought approval from FERC, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Maine Public Utilities Commission, and the New York Public Service Commission; but the company did not seek review or approval in Connecticut, where the utility serves more than 340,000 natural gas and electric customers.
“Connecticut families are hurting right now under surging, unaffordable electric costs. We need more accountability and oversight, not less when it comes to our public utilities,” Tong said in September.
Connecticut’s Public Utilities Regulatory Authority reportedly opened a docket to review the Iberdrola-Avangrid deal, but no dates have been set for a potential proceeding. Avangrid contents Connecticut regulators lack the authority to weigh in, according to CT Insider.
