Source: http://www.firstenergycbp.com/FAQ/General.aspx
Timestamp: 2018-06-20 10:58:39
Document Index: 48311334

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 1', 'art 1', 'art 2', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 4', 'art 4', 'art 4', 'art 2', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 2', 'art 2', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 2', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 2', 'art 1', 'art 2', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 2', 'art 2', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 2', 'art 2', 'art 2', 'art 1', 'art 2', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1', 'art 1']

FirstEnergy Ohio Utilities CBP SSO Auctions > FAQ > General
Question: Are the tranches being procured by planning year or by each 12, 24, and 36 month term?
Answer: Tranches are being procured for each product in the auction. Each product in the auction has its own tranche target and delivery period. For example, there is a tranche target for the 12-month product, a tranche target for the 24-month product, and a tranche target for the 36-month product. However all products may or may not be offered in any individual auction.
Question: What does “applicable delivery period” mean in this statement, “Each tranche represents one percent (1%) of the actual hourly energy required for SSO Load for the applicable Delivery Period”?
Answer: Different products in the auction have different delivery periods. A tranche for a product represents one percent (1%) of the actual hourly energy required for SSO Load during that product's delivery period.
Question: For the auctions with three products (12/24/36 month terms), will all three products be procured simultaneously during the auction? Will three different prices be associated with the products?
Answer: For auctions with more than one product, all products will be procured simultaneously in the auction. Each product will have its own price.
Answer: In this context, market-based transmission generally means transmission and ancillary charges whose rates/costs are set in total or in part by the PJM energy market. Congestion and incremental losses would be two examples. The Master SSO Supply Agreement lists all current transmission costs that will not be the responsibility of SSO Suppliers. All other transmission costs that are incurred by suppliers as the Load Serving Entity (LSE) will be the responsibility of the Supplier.
Question: Can you please provide a detailed description of how capacity is handled and priced in each auction? Is it priced in $/MWh of energy served? Specifically, how does FEOU provide each planning year’s capacity price prior to the auction?
Answer: SSO bidders bid on a $/MWh price per tranche. Winning bidders are responsible for providing a full requirements product, which includes capacity, with the exception of certain non-market transmission related expenses as listed in the Master SSO Supply Agreement.
SSO bidders in each auction will know the price of capacity to be delivered to the FE Ohio load zone for each PJM planning year prior to the auction taking place. PJM capacity clearing prices can be found on the PJM Website at http://www.pjm.com/markets-and-operations/rpm/.
Answer: PJM Auction Revenue Rights (ARR) allocations are performed by PJM per Section 17: Auction Revenue Rights Settlements contained in PJM's Manual 28: Operating Agreement Accounting found at http://www.pjm.com/~/media/documents/manuals/m28.ashx. If auctions have not taken place, or suppliers have not been identified prior to the start of the ARR nomination process, the FirstEnergy Ohio Utilities will make the ARR nominations for the open SSO load and the resulting allocations will be posted on the Load and Other Data Documents page of the Information Website. Once the suppliers for the SSO load have been identified, PJM will allocate each SSO supplier its proportional share of ARRs for the load being served in accordance with the PJM manual.
Question: Where are the tranche targets/size for each auction posted?
Answer: The tranche target and size are posted on the News page of the Information Website.
Question: Is it correct that NITS and transmission charge components based on demand are direct pass-through items to end-use consumers for the auctions in this Competitive Bidding Process?
Answer: Items that are listed in Section 2.3 of the Master SSO Supply Agreement are not part of the auction product for the SSO Supplier to provide. These products/services will be direct-billed to retail customers by the Companies.
Question: Does the Legal Representative listed on the Online Account Application need to be our Legal Representative in Ohio? If so, can we also list an internal Legal Representative that does not have an address in Ohio?
Answer: Indicating the Legal Representative in the Online Account Request Form is optional. However, you must identify the Legal Representative in the Part 1 Application. The Legal Representative is legal counsel that is authorized and agrees to accept service of process on the applicant’s behalf and the Legal Representative must have an address in Ohio.
Question: In the Bidder Information Session presentation available on the Information Website, you stated that SSO suppliers would not be obligated to provide alternative or renewable energy requirements. Can you point out where this is stated in the Master SSO Supply Agreement?
Answer: Please see the definition of SSO Supply and Standard Service Offer in the Master Standard Service Offer Supply Agreement.
Question: If I fill out an online application and upload all the financial data (10K, 10Q, etc.) and also the PJM documentation, do I also have to send hardcopies of the financial data and other supporting documentation when I send the original hardcopy of the application with signatures?
Answer: The Part 1 and Part 2 Applications can be submitted electronically; no hardcopies are required.
Question: If the supporting documentation for the Part 1 Application (i.e., ratings information, financial information, etc.) is provided through the online tool, is it still necessary to send a hardcopy of the supporting documentation along with the rest of the Part 1 Application?
Answer: If the supporting documentation is uploaded through the applicant's online account, then hardcopies of the supporting documentation are not required.
Question: Are applicants allowed to submit proposed changes to the Master SSO Supply Agreement with the Part 1 Application?
Answer: No changes to the Master SSO Supply Agreement will be accepted.
Question: In the Part 1 Application, section 1.6, part 4(c), p. 14, applicants are asked to certify that they have no civil penalties, judgments, consent decrees, etc. As a large organization we are uncertain whether we can certify to that in full. We can provide a qualification in the box on p. 14. We can certify to (a), (b), (d), (e), and (f). Should we sign or not sign under part 4 on p. 14?
Answer: Please sign in section 1.6, part 4, but list the qualification on page 14.
Answer: A Word version of the Form of SSO Supplier Letter of Credit is available on the Supplier Documents Web page on the Information Website.
Question: Can you please confirm when the auction results will be made available to the public?
Answer: This is determined by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio’s post-auction review process. Please see Section 7.1, "Notification of Results," and Section 12.2, "Certifications and Disclosures to Be Made," in the "Bidding Rules" document on the Information Website for more information.
Question: What time will an auction begin?
Answer: The starting time will be announced to the Registered Bidders close to the auction date.
Question: When will the minimum and maximum starting prices for round 1 of an auction be announced?
Answer: The minimum and maximum starting prices for an auction will be announced no later than the start of the online Part 2 Application process for the auction.
Answer: As part of the Part 1 Application process, applicants are required to identify the applicant’s Legal Representative in Ohio, who must be a legal counsel, have an address in Ohio, and be authorized and agree to accept service of process on the applicant’s behalf.
GEN 00022
Question: Under the Master SSO Supply Agreement, winning bidders organized outside of Ohio must be registered and authorized to do business and in good standing in Ohio. By registering to do business in Ohio, will we be exposed to Ohio's gross receipts tax across all of our business units? Are there any options or strategies to minimize exposure to the Ohio gross receipts tax?
GEN 00023
Question: Can a successful Part 1 Applicant (i.e., a Qualified Bidder) add a parental guarantee during the Part 2 Application process? More generally, can a Qualified Bidder alter its creditworthiness by either adding a guarantor, changing its guarantor, dropping a member of its bidding consortium, or changing out a member of its bidding consortium with a more credit-worthy entity?
Answer: Prior to the Part 2 Application Due Date, a Qualified Bidder may alter its creditworthiness as follows:
(1) Add a guarantor, in the case where a guarantor was not named in the original Part 1 Application.
(2) Change its guarantor from the one named in the original Part 1 Application to a new one.
A Qualified Bidder may not add a new member to its bidding consortium from what was disclosed in the Part 1 Application.
In all cases where the creditworthiness of the Qualified Bidder is changed, a new set of information in the relevant Part 1 Application forms must be submitted to the Auction Manager prior to the Part 2 Application deadline. To the extent the financial status of a Qualified Bidder changes, either through Part 1 Application modifications or external factors, the Qualified Bidder must inform the Auction Manager.
A Registered Bidder also is required to report any change in financial status before the auction.
GEN 00025
Question: How are the auction prices converted into rates for the individual classes?
Answer: After the results of both auctions -- the October auction and the subsequent January auction -- are known in late January, retail rates for the individual classes continue to be calculated for the term of Case No. 14-1297-EL-SSO to be per the terms of the Stipulation filed in Case No. 12-1230-EL-SSO which states in part, “The rate design currently in effect remains in place other than as modified below.” The modifications are listed in Section A.5. of the Stipulation. The stipulation in Case No. 10-388-EL-SSO contains the mechanics of the rate design that was “currently in effect” at the time of the Stipulation filed in Case No. 12-1230-EL-SSO.
GEN 00026
Answer: FEOU does not know of any studies done by PJM on ancillary charges for the ATSI footprint. Most ancillary charges are market-based and are determined by the PJM market for ancillary services. Suppliers should contact PJM with specific questions regarding ancillary services. FEOU does not know of any potential SECA filings that would affect suppliers participating in this auction.
GEN 00027
Question: Are there any auction administration tranche fees?
Answer: No, there are no auction administration tranche fees.
GEN 00028
Question: Are all of the FirstEnergy Ohio Utilities' customers eligible for default service? Stated another way is the sum of the "total shopped" and "non-shopped" load equal to the total load published for the FE Ohio load zone?
Answer: The sum of the “Shop”, “NonShop” and “Economic Load Response Rider (ELR)” (starting 1/1/15) load is equal to the “Total” load published for the FE Ohio load zone in the Ohio hourly data files. To determine the aggregated total FE Ohio load, Percentage of Income Payment Plan (PIPP) load must also be added.
GEN 00029
Question: For a previously Qualified Bidder that submitted a successful Part 1 Application for the October auction, if their only change to their Part 1 Application for the following January auction is a new 10-Q, do they only need to upload that electronically? Is there any need to provide a new signed Part 1 Application for the January auction?
Answer: The previously Qualified Bidder needs to upload the new financial document online, update their financial data online (Sections 1.7 & 1.8 of the Part 1 Application), and submit the Part 1 Application online again. The Authorized Representative of the bidder will need to sign and date only the sections that have changes, and send those by email to FEOUAuctionManager@crai.com.
GEN 00031
Question: Is it necessary to become a CRES Supplier to participate in the competitive bidding process in which the FirstEnergy Ohio Utilities seek full requirements service for their SSO customers?
Answer: No, it is not necessary to be a Competitive Retail Electric Service (CRES) Supplier to participate in the FEOU Competitive Bidding Process or to be an SSO Supplier.
GEN 00032
Answer: Pre-Bid Security has the same due date as the Part 2 Application. Unless noted otherwise for a particular auction, it will remain in full force, at a minimum, until the fifth calendar day after the conclusion of the auction. Subsequently, a bidder’s Pre-Bid Security will be cancelled and returned. Yes, cash can be posted (via wire transfer) instead of a letter of credit.
GEN 00033
Question: Can a bidder submit multiple Part 1 Applications for different companies within the corporation as long as they disclose this? If so, does each company being submitted need different AR and ADs? Then, once the companies become Qualified Bidders, you then have to make the determination of which ONE company to proceed in the Part 2 Application process and ultimately the auction. Is this understanding correct?
Answer: Different companies within the same corporation can submit their own Part 1 Applications as long as they disclose they are doing this. The same Authorized Representative (AR) and the same Authorized Delegate (AD) can be used across the different companies for the Part 1 Application. However, the same AR and the same AD cannot be used across the different companies if and when they submit their Part 2 Applications. Bidders that are associated with one another may or may not be allowed to participate in the Part 2 Application process and beyond, or they may be subject to certain restrictions.
GEN 00034
Question: Are winning suppliers in the January auction (who had also won tranches in the previous October auction) required to sign a new Master SSO Supply Agreement or is an additional Appendix A added for any incremental tranches won?
Answer: The winning suppliers in an auction are required to sign a new Master SSO Supply Agreement.
GEN 00035
Question: Can you please elaborate on the difference between the energy obligation (e.g., 115 MW) and the capacity obligation (e.g., 130 MW) for each tranche awarded?
Answer: In this example, the 115 MW represents an estimate of the maximum hourly energy a supplier may need to supply per tranche and the 130 MW represents an estimate of the PJM capacity requirement a supplier may be obligated to provide per tranche. Please note that any such estimates of tranche size are provided for reference purposes only. The FirstEnergy Ohio Utilities do not represent that each tranche will have any particular MW value. The actual SSO load during the delivery period will depend on many factors.
GEN 00036
Question: How do the FirstEnergy Ohio Utilities plan to approach billing each SSO Supplier? Specifically should the SSO supplier expect the three FirstEnergy Ohio Utilities will be combined into one bill. If this is the case, what is the legal name of the entity that will be billing each SSO supplier?
Answer: Please refer to FAQ's PJM00009 and AGR00011.
GEN 00037
Question: Is there a cure deficiency period for the Part 1 Application? Will you notify participants if we need to make any updates to the application?
Answer: As is outlined in the instructions for the Part 1 Application, the Auction Manager will notify applicants of any deficiency in their Part 1 Application and the applicant will be allowed time to remedy any such deficiencies.
The Auction Manager will send a deficiency notice to the applicant’s Authorized Representative by email. You will have until 12:00 p.m. noon prevailing Eastern Time on the Part 1 Application Due Date, or until 5:00 p.m. prevailing Eastern Time on the Business Day following the Business Day during which a deficiency notice is sent, whichever comes later, to respond. If you do not correct or adequately explain the deficiency within the time allowed, your Part 1 Application may be rejected and you may be unable to participate in the Competitive Bidding Process.
GEN 00038
Question: Following the Part 2 Application process, (1) when will the list of Registered Bidders be made available assuming we have successfully completed the Part 2 Application and are a Registered Bidder ourselves? (Bidding Rules, Section 4.2.2) (2) When will the initial eligibility aggregated across all Registered Bidders be available? (Bidding Rules, Section 4.2.2) (3) When will the reporting ranges referenced in Section 5.4 of the Bidding Rules be available? (4) When will the starting price for the auction be available?
Answer: In response to questions (1) and (2): applicants will be informed no later than three (3) business days after the Part 2 Application Due Date whether they have become a Registered Bidder. The list of Registered Bidders along with the total initial eligibility aggregated across all Registered Bidders will be sent, as soon as is reasonably possible, after all individual bidders have received their Notifications of Registration.
In response to question (3): The reporting ranges referenced in Section 5.4 of the Bidding Rules will be sent to all bidders in advance of the live auction. The Auction Manager does not have an exact date for when this information will become available. In the past, this information was sent out to all bidders, via email, not long after the mock auction.
In response to question (4): The starting price will become available no later than the date indicated on the CBP Calendar. This Calendar may be viewed on the Information Website: http://www.firstenergycbp.com/Calendar.aspx.
GEN 00039
Question: If a customer switches and then comes back to FirstEnergy Ohio Utilities, does this customer load then become part of the SSO load?
Answer: Yes. The following is excerpted from page 18 of the FirstEnergy Ohio Utilities Electric Generation Supplier Coordination Tariff as approved by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio:
F. Customer Return to Standard Service Offer Supply A Customer’s return to Standard Service Offer Supply may be a result of Customer choice, supplier default, termination of a supplier contract, opt out or termination of a governmental aggregation program, or supplier withdrawal. A Customer may contact the Company to return to the Company’s Standard Service Offer Supply. The return to the Standard Service Offer Supply shall be conducted under the same terms and conditions applicable to an enrollment with a Certified Supplier. Thus, the Company will provide a rescission period consistent with the Commission rules. Provided the Customer has observed the applicable notification requirements and the Company has effectuated the request to return to the Standard Service Offer Supply twelve (12) calendar days prior to the next regularly scheduled Meter Read Date, the Customer will be returned to the Standard Service Offer Supply on the next regularly scheduled Meter Read Date. Large Commercial and Industrial Customers Return to Standard Service Offer Rate Return to Standard Service Offer Supply will be pursuant to the Company’s Electric Service Regulations Section XIII Return to Standard Offer Supply. Residential and Small Commercial Customers Return to Standard Service Offer Rate Residential and Small Commercial Customers return to Standard Service Offer Supply will be pursuant to the Company’s Electric Service Regulations Section XIII Return to Standard Offer Supply.
GEN 00041
Question: My company currently is a CRES in Ohio but has not signed agreements with any utilities as of yet. Can a CRES bid in the CBP SSO auction and be awarded the SSO load won without first having agreements in place with the utilities, and then upon award sign the normal agreements and perform the proper EDI testing?
Answer: No existing agreements with the FirstEnergy Ohio Utilities need to be in place prior to bidding in FEOU's CBP SSO auctions. In order to be allowed to bid in one of the auctions, a bidder must successfully complete the Part 1 Application and Part 2 Application process for that auction. In that application process, a bidder will agree to satisfy certain requirements should it become a winning SSO Supplier, such as committing to executing the Master SSO Supply Agreement following the auction, be a PJM member in good standing, be a PJM Load Serving Entity (LSE), and so forth.
GEN 00042
Question: Are the RMR charges associated with the agreements reached to keep certain FirstEnergy generation units online through 2015 allocated as generation deactivation and, therefore, to the FirstEnergy Ohio companies? Or, are the SSO suppliers responsible for the associated RMR charges?
Answer: The generation deactivation charges allocated to the ATSI load zone in Ohio will be invoiced by PJM to the FirstEnergy Ohio Companies.
GEN 00043
Question: Our financial statements are not public information, can you please identify the documents that state that the FirstEnergy Ohio Utilities and the Auction Manager (CRA International) will keep these confidential?
Answer: As stated in the Part 1 Application and reproduced below, materials submitted in association with the Part 1 Application will be shared on a confidential basis with the FirstEnergy Ohio Utilities, CRA International, and the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio.
CONFIDENTIALITY OF CREDIT INFORMATION Any information and materials that you submit in this Part 1 Application may be provided on a confidential basis to the Auction Manager Team and the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (“PUCO” or “Commission”) and their representatives. Information that you provide in this Part 1 Application, except for information regarding bidding agreements provided in Section 1.11, may be provided on a confidential basis to representatives of the FirstEnergy Ohio Utilities for a creditworthiness assessment.
GEN 00044
Question: Our legal representative in Ohio is a corporation and not an individual. In this case, is it acceptable to leave the Last Name, First Name, Mr/Mrs/Ms/DR(other), and Title fields blank in Section 1.4 of the Part 1 Application?
Answer: The FirstEnergy Ohio Utilities require that the Ohio Legal Representative be an individual and not a corporation.
GEN 00047
Question: Have the June 2014 rates for Sheet 114, Rider GEN, Generation Service Rider been calculated for any or all of the First Energy Ohio Companies?
Answer: Current tariffs are available at:https://www.firstenergycorp.com/content/customer/customer_choice/ohio_/ohio_tariffs.html
GEN 00048
Question: Is each product in the auction for all 3 utilities combined together or is there a separate product for each of the utilities?
Answer: Each product in the auction is for the three utilities combined. There is no product specific to each utility.
GEN 00049
Question: Does the load that SSO suppliers serve include Unaccounted For Energy (UFE)?
GEN 00052
Question: When is the next auction?
Answer: When the schedule for upcoming auctions has been approved by the PUCO, notice will be posted on the Calendar page of the auction Information Website (www.FirstEnergyCBP.com/Calendar.aspx), and registered users of the Information Website will be informed via email.
GEN 00054
Question: (1) FirstEnergy Ohio Utilities' Rider ELR (Economic Load Response Rider) is set to expire on May 31, 2016. SSO customers under this Rider were not allowed to shop. Since this Rider is expiring, will these customers be able to shop? (2) Referring to the ELR customers in question (1), assuming the answer is yes to question (1), how much load is associated with the ELR Rider and is subject to shopping? What is the impact on the peak load contribution (PLC) for SSO load?
Answer: Historically customers had to take generation service from the Companies in order to be eligible for the Economic Load Response Program Rider (Rider ELR). These Rider ELR customers were non-shopping customers through June 1, 2016. Eligibility for Rider ELR is no longer dependent on their taking generation service from the Companies. Starting on June 1, 2016 the Rider ELR load was included in the applicable shop or non-shop category.
GEN 00056
Question: Will the Companies’ recovery of the ancillary services including Balancing Operating Reserves and Reactive Services occur through a bypassable or non-bypassable rider?
Answer: With the exception of a small scale pilot that may impact a few shopping customers and their suppliers, all other customers of the Companies will be charged for non-market based transmission services as defined in the Master Supply Agreement on a non-bypassable basis.
GEN 00057
Question: Will suppliers be responsible for any potential costs stemming from the Grid Resiliency Price Rule that Secretary Perry sent to FERC on September 28, 2017, linked below? https://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2017/09/f37/Notice%20of%20Proposed%20Rulemaking%20.pdf
Answer: The FE Ohio Utilities cannot project an outcome with regards to the proposed Grid Resiliency Price Rule or other proposed market changes. Generally, the supplier bears the obligation for these new proposals, as discussed in Section 2.4 of the Master SSO Supply Agreement (MSA): “Each SSO Supplier is responsible, at its sole cost and expense, for any changes in PJM products and pricing during the Term.
GEN 00058
Question: Can you confirm that if Senate Bill 128 (Zero Emission Nuclear Program) were to pass that SSO suppliers would not be responsible for the costs associated with the program?
Answer: The FE Ohio Utilities cannot project who is responsible for a new cost of providing SSO Service until after a proposed Ohio Senate or Ohio House Bill has become law and until after the PUCO acts upon such new law.
GEN 00059
Question: If a government aggregation returns to standard offer service, is there a minimum amount of time that the government aggregation is required to remain on standard offer service?
Answer: Currently there is no minimum stay for customers electing to return to the Companies' standard-offer service. However, customers may only change who they take generation service from once a month on their regularly scheduled meter reading date. Please refer to the Companies' Electric Service Regulations, which are publicly available and can change from time to time based upon action of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio.
The information presented and distributed in the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) may be subject to modifications and/or amendments and is provided for informational purposes only. The information provided in the CBP, or on the CBP Information Website, has been prepared to assist bidders in evaluating the CBP. It does not purport to contain all the information that may be relevant to a bidder in satisfying its due diligence efforts. Neither FirstEnergy Corp., the FirstEnergy Ohio Utilities nor the CBP Manager make any representation or warranty, expressed or implied, as to the accuracy or completeness of the information, and shall not, either individually or as a corporation, be liable for any representation expressed or implied in the CBP or any omissions from the CBP, or any information provided to a bidder by any other source. A bidder should check the CBP Information Website frequently to ensure it has the latest documentation and information. Neither the FirstEnergy Ohio Utilities, nor the CBP Manager, nor any of their representatives, shall be liable to a bidder or any of its representatives for any consequences relating to or arising from the bidder’s use of outdated information. The information is not intended to form any part of the basis of any investment decision, valuation or any bid that may be submitted during the CBP process. Each recipient should not rely solely on this information and should make its own independent assessment of the potential value to supply the FirstEnergy Ohio Utilities' load after making all investigations it deems necessary.