Exelon’s Constellation NewEnergy retail unit will pay American Electric Power $252,701 to settle AEP’s complaint over MISO’s failure to collect transmission charges from a defunct load-serving entity more than a decade ago.
The settlement, approved by FERC on Friday, addresses charges billed to Nicor Energy (EL18-7-001, ER20-207). Constellation purchased most of Nicor’s competitive energy supply contracts for 8,000 commercial and industrial gas and electric customers in Michigan, Illinois and Indiana in 2003.
In a 2017 complaint, AEP claimed that MISO owed more than $4.8 million to its PJM transmission affiliates after MISO failed to bill seams-related surcharges to Nicor and energy providers Engage Energy America and The New Power Co., all of which shuttered before December 2004, when MISO created the charges. (See AEP Seeks $4.8M from MISO in Past Lost Revenues Complaint.)
AEP sought the money through the Seams Elimination Charge/Cost Adjustments/Assignments (SECA), a non-bypassable surcharge in MISO’s Tariff intended to recover lost revenues for a 16-month transition period during the elimination of through-and-out rates in late 2004 in the MISO and PJM regions.
AEP said its withdrawal of its complaint in docket EL18-7 eliminates the need for the commission to act on pending rehearing requests by itself and MISO.
The settlement said the payment by Constellation is “a complete and final settlement” of Exelon’s SECA obligations to AEP but that AEP’s withdrawal of its complaint is without prejudice to its right to initiate a future proceeding seeking recovery of SECA payments from other parties.
AEP did not respond to a request for comment on whether it will pursue claims over Engage and New Power. Engage went out of business in 2004, and New Power was liquidated in bankruptcy in 2003.
