Utility Seeks To Suspend Ability For Retail Suppliers To Enroll Customers For Over Two Weeks

Utility Seeks To Suspend Ability For Retail Suppliers To Submit New Rates For 12 Days

Activation Of New Retail Supplier Entrants To Be Suspended For Over 45 Days

January 20, 2022

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Copyright 2010-21 EnergyChoiceMatters.com
Reporting by Paul Ring • ring@energychoicematters.com

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Duke Energy Ohio has applied for various waivers of certain Ohio rules as part of a cutover to a new CIS and billing system

Among other things, due to such cutover, Duke sought waivers of applicable rules so that, from March 18, 2002 until April 6, 2022, Duke may suspend inbound transactions for CRES [retail electric supplier] and CRNG [retail gas supplier] enrollments and drops.

"Beginning on March 18 and until April 6, 2022, Duke Energy Ohio plans to suspend accepting inbound transactions for CRES and CRNG enrollments, reinstatements, and drops. All such requests that are submitted will be rejected. The CRES and CRNG providers will be notified of each rejection," Duke said

Notably, "the rejections will not be stored by the Company for later processing," Duke said

"The requests will need to be submitted by CRES and CRNG providers after April 6," Duke said

CRES and CRNGS providers will have to wait until April 6 to send electronic enrollment requests received after March 18.

"Accordingly, for this period, the Company requires a temporary waiver of the relevant portions of Rule 4901:1-10-29 and 4901:1-13-14 which require the Company to take certain actions upon receiving enrollment and drop (i.e., returning to the standard service offer or GCR) transactions. Additionally, the Company will require a temporary waiver of the time limits for correcting unauthorized switches either to another provider or to the utility’s standard service offer or GCR which are given in Rules 4901:1-21-08(C) and 4901:1-29-08(D), because such corrections are also initiated by an enrollment transaction," Duke said

CRES and CRNGS will not be able to implement service commencements or contract terminations between March 18 and April 6, Duke noted, as Duke sought a waiver for suppliers of applicable rules related to such obligations.

Duke further said additional time will be needed in some cases to report slamming and to permit providers to drop slammed customers.

Rules 4901:1-21-08(C) and 4901:1-29-08(D) govern the reporting and resolution of incidents of slamming.

"With various functions being suspended as described above, waiver of the [applicable] time limits should be granted if there are instances of reported slamming by the Company where the suspension of certain functions during conversion may have delayed the customer’s awareness that slamming had occurred," Duke said

Generally, customers have 30 calendar days for the first bill from the provider alleged to have slammed the customer to contest the alleged slamming without being required to pay such charges.

"Such waiver will permit customers whose recognition of slamming was delayed through no fault of their own to obtain the more favorable treatment associated with earlier reporting," Duke said

From March 30 until April 6, 2022, Duke will not send any outbound transactions to CRES providers. Outbound transactions will resume April 6.

Beginning on March 25 and until April 6, 2022, Duke said that it will suspend the processing of requests to implement new rates for CRES or CRNG providers. On April 6, 2022, the Company will resume processing such requests. "Requests submitted in the interim will be accepted and stored for processing after April 6," Duke said

From March 30 until April 6, 2022, Duke will suspend requests of CRES providers for customer-related transactions, such as changes in rate code, reinstatements, and historical usage requests. From March 30 until April 6, 2022, CRES providers will be unable to make electronic requests, including updates to existing rate codes, and historical usage requests. Any requests attempted during this period will be rejected and will not be stored for processing after April 6.

From March 30 until April 6, 2022, Duke will suspend the processing of bill-ready billing transactions from CRES providers. Under the Supplier Tariff P.U.C.O. Electric No. 20, Section 10.9(a), a CRES provider electing bill-ready billing has three business days after receiving customer usage information to provide a charge amount back to the Company. However, with the above suspension, a CRES provider who receives usage information on March 29, 2022, will have only one day to provide a charge amount to the Company before the suspension takes effect and then the transaction would be frozen until after April 6. Likewise, a CRES provider who receives usage information on March 28 will only have two days to provide a charge amount. Accordingly, the Company requests a temporary waiver, for this period, of Section 10.9(a) of Supplier Tariff P.U.C.O. Electric No. 20.

From February 18, 2022 until April 6, 2022, Duke will suspend activation of new CRES [retail electric] and CRNG [retail gas] providers.

"Beginning on February 18 and until April 6, 2022, Duke Energy Ohio plans to suspend activating any new CRES or CRNGS providers in the existing legacy CIS. A provider who completes certification after February 18 will need to wait until after April 6 to begin activation in the new system and will not be able to serve customers until activation is complete. The Company respectfully requests temporary waivers of Rules 4901:1-10-29 and 4901:1-13-14, as well as any relevant provisions in its electric Supplier Tariff (P.U.C.O. No. 20) and Gas Tariff (P.U.C.O. No. 18) to permit this suspension," Duke said

Duke also plans to suspend processing of new CRES or CRNG provider logos from March 15 to April 6, 2022. Accordingly, the Company requested temporary waiver of Section 10.12 of its Supplier Tariff P.U.C.O. No. 20.

From March 30 until April 6, 2022, all gas flat file transactions will be suspended. This includes inbound and outbound transactions, including but not limited to enrollments, drops, changes, reinstatements, usage requests, and rate-ready billing transactions.

Duke also sought, for retail suppliers, waiver of applicable and related rule provisions concerning supplier obligations impacted by the suspensions or other temporary changes described above

In addition to those provisions discussed above, Duke noted that suppliers will need temporary waiver of the contract disclosure requirement of estimated starting and expiration dates of contracts insofar as such dates may be impacted by the conversion.

Case 22-0043-GE-WVR

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