Columbia Gas proposal should be nixed, Maryland People’s Counsel says
The independent state agency that represents Maryland’s residential natural gas consumers before the Public Service Commission is blowing the whistle on Columbia Gas’ attempt to expand its gas system replacement program in Washington County and westward, stating it could be costly for consumers.
Maryland People’s Counsel David Lapp, an attorney who represents Maryland’s residential natural gas consumers through the state’s Office of People’s Counsel, said the company’s proposal is an attempt to change what had been laid out.
“Columbia has nearly accomplished the pipe replacement work that it set out to do a decade ago,” said Lapp, in a news release. “Now it is moving the goalposts so that it can continue its highly profitable infrastructure investments — despite the substantial risk that those investments will become obsolete as a result of State climate policy and gas’s declining competitiveness against electric heating and appliance options.”
More:Maryland Department of the Environment meets to hear climate concerns
A report last year from the Office of People’s Counsel shows Columbia Gas of Maryland projecting to spend $0 from 2029 to 2043 under the state’s Strategic Infrastructure Development and Enhancement (STRIDE) law, with the company spending roughly $57 million from 2024 to 2028.
Testimony submitted before the Public Service Commission on behalf of the Maryland Office of People’s Counsel from Sept. 1 shows that Columbia’s budget for these replacement activities now exceeds $100 million over the five-year period, which starts next year and represents a more than $40 million increase from before.
In the release, Lapp said the proposed expansion is “to the detriment of customers and in conflict with State efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.” The release also said Columbia’s proposal “opens the door to 17 more years of work,” which could cost customers millions.
The Maryland Office of People’s Counsel filing with the Public Service Commission says the proposal from Columbia Gas should be rejected.
A spokesperson for the company, a subsidiary of the Indiana-based NiSource Inc., which provides natural gas distribution services to 34,000 customers across Allegany, Garrett and Washington counties, said Columbia Gas is “committed to system safety and reliability for our customers and communities.”
“We must continue to invest in our system to upgrade aging infrastructure, just as investments are made in bridges, roads and other infrastructure in our cities, towns, and communities,” said Russell Bedell, director of communications for Columbia Gas in Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia, in an email.
More:Maryland Public Service Commission set two public hearings on proposed gas rate hike
Not the only proposal from Columbia Gas
The proposed expansion comes at the same time as the company’s proposed roughly $15-a-month hike to residents’ natural gas bills. That increase is to “recover the costs of the company’s increased investment in the replacement of leak-prone pipelines, and increased operation and maintenance expenses,” according to an August release from the Public Service Commission.
Bedell wrote in an email last month that: “Some current pipeline replacement efforts in Washington County include projects that have started or will soon start on Elgin Boulevard, Prospect Street, and Memorial Boulevard.”
Two public hearings took place regarding that proposal to raise the rate in late August — one in Hagerstown and one in Cumberland.
The Public Service Commission is expected to issue a final ruling in that case by Dec. 8, with any new rate set to go into effect following that ruling.
Dwight A. Weingarten is an investigative reporter, covering the Maryland State House and state issues. He can be reached at dweingarten@gannett.com or on Twitter at @DwightWeingart2.
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