Opinion ID: 1792724
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: terms and general background

Text: MUD is a political subdivision operating as a natural gas and water utility in the city of Omaha and in Sarpy County, Nebraska. Aquila, an investor-owned natural gas utility, operates in areas of Sarpy County. Aquila and MUD are distributors of natural gas and have contracts with Northern Natural Gas (Northern), which supplies natural gas to distributors in the area. Northern transfers the natural gas to each of its distributors at a servicing town border station (TBS). Each TBS serves only one distributor and is designed to supply a specific amount of natural gas. TBS's operate independently of each other and are designed and used by MUD, but are owned by Northern. According to MUD, urban encroachment around a TBS can create safety issues. MUD prefers to have its TBS's equally spaced around the perimeter of its service area and in undeveloped areas. When it builds a TBS, it considers the current customer load and the potential for new customers. According to MUD, it oversizes its TBS's so that the zones of influence of each TBS overlaps if there is a loss of service from any particular TBS.