Kentucky Public Service Commission approves settlement in Columbia Gas of Kentucky rate case
LEXINGTON, Ky. – October 26, 2009 – The Kentucky Public Service Commission (PSC) today issued its Order accepting a settlement that allows Columbia Gas of Kentucky an increase in total revenues of $6.125 million, or 3.7 percent.
Columbia Gas of Kentucky (Columbia) filed its request to change its base delivery rates charged to its customers in 31 counties throughout Central and Eastern Kentucky on May 1, 2009. The Company’s proposal included benefits to customers, including continuation of its infrastructure improvement program and the implementation of an energy efficiency program. Interveners representing a variety of customers in the case included the Kentucky Attorney General, the Community Action Council, the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government, AARP, Interstate Gas Supply, Constellation Energy, Stand Energy and Kentucky Industrial Utility Customers (KIUC).
With the approval of the unanimous settlement, the monthly customer charge for residential accounts will be $12.35, effective October 27, 2009. The monthly customer charge for commercial accounts will be $25.13.
The settlement provides Columbia the ability to create a residential Energy Efficiency and Conservation program that will include home energy audits and incentives to help residential customers buy high efficiency natural gas appliances as well as a furnace replacement program for low-income customers.
“These programs are important as they will help consumers save on commodity costs which make up the majority of their monthly bill,” said Herbert A. Miller, Jr., president of Columbia Gas of Kentucky.
Columbia will continue its infrastructure improvement program to replace aging gas lines and enhance the overall safety and reliability of its gas distribution system over a 30-year period. Ultimately, Columbia expects to replace approximately 525 miles of pipe and associated service lines throughout its service area in Central and Eastern Kentucky. The settlement approved by the PSC includes the recovery of costs associated with almost $11 million invested in 2008 in this infrastructure program as well as a mechanism to recover future investments in the program.
Columbia Gas of Kentucky, headquartered in Lexington, is one of the nine energy distribution companies of NiSource Inc. (NYSE: NI), a Fortune 500 company engaged in natural gas transmission, storage and distribution, as well as electric generation, transmission and distribution. Columbia Gas of Kentucky serves approximately 140,000 customers in 31 Kentucky counties. NiSource operating companies deliver energy to 3.8 million customers located within the high-demand energy corridor stretching from the Gulf Coast through the Midwest to New England. More information about Columbia Gas of Kentucky is available at www.columbiagasky.com. More information about NiSource and its other subsidiaries is available at www.nisource.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Those statements include statements regarding the intent, belief or current expectations of NiSource and its management. Although NiSource believes that its expectations are based on reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurance that its goals will be achieved. Readers are cautioned that the forward-looking statements in this presentation are not guarantees of future performance and involve a number of risks and uncertainties, and that actual results could differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the following: weather; fluctuations in supply and demand for energy commodities; growth opportunities for NiSource’s businesses; increased competition in deregulated energy markets; the success of regulatory and commercial initiatives; dealings with third parties over whom NiSource has no control; the effectiveness of NiSource’s outsourcing initiative; actual operating experience of NiSource assets; the regulatory process; regulatory and legislative changes; changes in general economic, capital and commodity market conditions; and counter-party credit risk.