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Rate Matters and Regulation | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2013
Regulated Operations [Abstract] |
Rate Matters and Regulation | Rate Matters and Regulation Regulation and Rates OG&E's retail electric tariffs are regulated by the OCC in Oklahoma and by the APSC in Arkansas. The issuance of certain securities by OG&E is also regulated by the OCC and the APSC. OG&E's wholesale electric tariffs, transmission activities, short-term borrowing authorization and accounting practices are subject to the jurisdiction of the FERC. The Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy has jurisdiction over some of OG&E's facilities and operations. In 2013, 85 percent of OG&E's electric revenue was subject to the jurisdiction of the OCC, eight percent to the APSC and seven percent to the FERC. The OCC issued an order in 1996 authorizing OG&E to reorganize into a subsidiary of OGE Energy. The order required that, among other things, (i) OGE Energy permit the OCC access to the books and records of OGE Energy and its affiliates relating to transactions with OG&E, (ii) OGE Energy employ accounting and other procedures and controls to protect against subsidization of non-utility activities by OG&E's customers and (iii) OGE Energy refrain from pledging OG&E assets or income for affiliate transactions. In addition, the Energy Policy Act of 2005 enacted the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 2005, which in turn granted to the FERC access to the books and records of OGE Energy and its affiliates as the FERC deems relevant to costs incurred by OG&E or necessary or appropriate for the protection of utility customers with respect to the FERC jurisdictional rates. Completed Regulatory Matters Crossroads Wind Farm As previously reported, OG&E signed memoranda of understanding in February 2010 for approximately 197.8 megawatts of wind turbine generators and certain related balance of plant engineering, procurement and construction services associated with the Crossroads wind farm. Also as part of this project, on June 16, 2011, OG&E entered into an interconnection agreement with the SPP for the Crossroads wind farm which allowed the Crossroads wind farm to interconnect at 227.5 megawatts. On August 31, 2012, OG&E filed an application with the APSC requesting approval to recover the Arkansas portion of the costs of the Crossroads wind farm through a rider until such costs are included in OG&E's base rates as part of its next general rate proceeding. On April 15, 2013, the APSC issued an order authorizing OG&E to recover the Arkansas portion of the cost to construct the Crossroads wind farm, effective retroactively to August 1, 2012. The costs are being recovered through the Energy Cost Recovery Rider. Fuel Adjustment Clause Review for Calendar Year 2011 The OCC routinely reviews the costs recovered from customers through OG&E’s fuel adjustment clause. On July 31, 2012, the OCC Staff filed an application for a public hearing to review and monitor OG&E's application of the 2011 fuel adjustment clause and for a prudence review of OG&E's electric generation, purchased power and fuel procurement processes and costs in calendar year 2011. OG&E filed information and documents in response to the OCC's application on October 1, 2012. On December 19, 2012, witnesses for the OCC Staff filed responsive testimony recommending that the OCC approve OG&E's fuel adjustment clause costs and recoveries for the calendar year 2011 and recommending that the OCC find that OG&E's electric generation, purchased power, fuel procurement and other fuel related practices, policies and decisions during calendar year 2011 were fair, just and reasonable and prudent. On April 9, 2013, the OCC administrative law judge recommended that the OCC find that for the calendar year 2011 OG&E's electric generation, purchased power and fuel procurement processes and costs were prudent. On June 18, 2013, the OCC issued an order approving the administrative law judge’s recommendation. Pending Regulatory Matter s FERC Order No. 1000, Final Rule on Transmission Planning and Cost Allocation On July 21, 2011, the FERC issued Order No. 1000, which revised the FERC's existing regulations governing the process for planning enhancements and expansions of the electric transmission grid in a particular region, along with the corresponding process for allocating the costs of such expansions. Order No. 1000 leaves to individual regions to determine whether a previously-approved project is subject to reevaluation and is therefore governed by the new rule. Order No. 1000 requires, among other things, public utility transmission providers, such as the SPP, to participate in a process that produces a regional transmission plan satisfying certain standards, and requires that each such regional process consider transmission needs driven by public policy requirements (such as state or Federal policies favoring increased use of renewable energy resources). Order No. 1000 also directs public utility transmission providers to coordinate with neighboring transmission planning regions. In addition, Order No. 1000 establishes specific regional cost allocation principles and directs public utility transmission providers to participate in regional and interregional transmission planning processes that satisfy these principles. On the issue of determining how entities are to be selected to develop and construct the specific transmission projects, Order No. 1000 directs public utility transmission providers to remove from the FERC-jurisdictional tariffs and agreements provisions that establish any Federal "right of first refusal" for the incumbent transmission owner (such as OG&E) regarding transmission facilities selected in a regional transmission planning process, subject to certain limitations. However, Order No. 1000 is not intended to affect the right of an incumbent transmission owner (such as OG&E) to build, own and recover costs for upgrades to its own transmission facilities, and Order No. 1000 does not alter an incumbent transmission owner's use and control of existing rights of way. Order No. 1000 also clarifies that incumbent transmission owners may rely on regional transmission facilities to meet their reliability needs or service obligations. The SPP currently has a "right of first refusal" for incumbent transmission owners and this provision has played a role in OG&E being selected by the SPP to build various transmission projects in Oklahoma. These changes to the "right of first refusal" apply only to "new transmission facilities," which are described as those subject to evaluation or reevaluation (under the applicable local or regional transmission planning process) subsequent to the effective date of the regulatory compliance filings required by the rule, which were filed on November 13, 2012. On May 29, 2013, the Governor signed House Bill 1932 into law which establishes a right of first refusal for Oklahoma incumbent transmission owners, including OG&E, to build new transmission projects with voltages under 300 kilovolts that interconnect to those incumbent entities' existing facilities. OG&E believes this law is consistent with the language of Order No. 1000. On July 18, 2013, the FERC issued an order on the SPP's Order No. 1000 compliance filing. This order accepted in part and rejected in part the SPP's plan for complying with Order No. 1000. The FERC rejected the SPP's plan to retain the right of first refusal for projects that would operate between 100 kilovolts and 300 kilovolts. However, the FERC clarified that a right of first refusal was appropriate in certain circumstances. It is not clear how the FERC's order will relate to the recently enacted Oklahoma law addressing a right of first refusal for lower voltages. On November 15, 2013, SPP made its FERC compliance filing, as required by the July 18, 2013 order. The SPP changes to its tariff and Membership Agreement included provisions that (i) clarify that facilities between 100 kilovolts and 300 kilovolts would be subject to the competitive selection process, (ii) only allow certain evidence, such as state laws (like House Bill 1932) and the holders of existing rights of way, to be considered during the competitive selection process and not earlier in the process; (iii) apply a right of first refusal to transmission projects needed for reliability within three years in certain situations; and (iv) revise the tariff’s competitive selection process, including changes to the criteria for identifying qualifying transmission owners, the requirements for submission of information by transmission owners seeking to participate in competitive selections, and the procedures that govern the competitive selection process. OGE Energy cannot, at this time, determine the precise impact of Order No. 1000 on OG&E. OG&E has filed a petition for review in the D.C. Circuit relating to the same matter. Nevertheless, at the present time, OGE Energy has no reason to believe that the implementation of Order No. 1000 will impact OG&E's transmission projects currently under development and construction for which OG&E has received a notice to proceed from the SPP. Fuel Adjustment Clause Review for Calendar Year 2012 On July 31, 2013, the OCC Staff filed an application to review OG&E's fuel adjustment clause for calendar year 2012, including the prudence of OG&E's electric generation, purchased power and fuel procurement costs. OG&E filed the necessary information and documents needed to satisfy the OCC's minimum filing requirement rules on October 9, 2013. A hearing on this matter is scheduled for April 24, 2014. Request for Modification to Previous Orders On August 2, 2013, OG&E filed an application at the OCC seeking to make minor modifications to three previous OCC orders. The purpose of the application was to address the timing of certain requirements contained in those orders. OG&E's application proposed to address these issues in OG&E's next general rate case thus avoiding the cost associated with a rate case filing now and benefiting customers by deferring the recovery of certain costs identified in the previous orders. On September 3, 2013, the PUD Staff filed a motion to dismiss OG&E's application. PUD Staff requested that the OCC dismiss OG&E's application and issue an order requiring OG&E to file a rate case for the 2012 test year. On September 11, 2013, the PUD Staff withdrew their motion to dismiss OG&E's application and on September 12, 2013, filed an application requesting a public hearing, review and possible adjustment of the rates and charges of OG&E based on the 2012 test year. To date, no procedural schedule has been established for either the OG&E application or the PUD Staff application. Energy Efficiency Program Filing On October 9, 2013 OG&E filed an application with the APSC requesting approval of interim modifications to approved Energy Efficiency Programs, new tariff revisions and the waiver of certain provisions of the Commission’s Rules for Conservation and Energy Efficiency Programs. Market-Based Rate Authority On June 29, 2012, OG&E filed its triennial market power update with the FERC to retain its market-based rate authorization in the SPP's energy imbalance service market but to surrender its market-based rate authorization for any market-based rates sales outside of the SPP's energy imbalance service market. On May 2, 2013, the FERC issued an order accepting OG&E's June 2012 triennial market power update. On December 30, 2013, OG&E submitted to the FERC a market-based rate change in status filing and a revised market-based rate tariff. The revised tariff will authorize OG&E to (i) sell electric energy and capacity at market-based rates without geographic restriction, and (ii) sell ancillary services in the SPP and Midcontinent Independent System Operator, Inc. markets. The primary goal of this filing was to implement the market-based rate authority OG&E needs to fully participate in SPP’s Integrated Marketplace. OG&E requested that FERC issue an order on or before February 28, 2014 that accepts the revised market-based rate tariff to be effective on the date SPP’s Integrated Marketplace goes into operation, which is expected to be March 1, 2014. Section 206 Complaint On November 26, 2013, Arkansas Electric Cooperative Corporation filed a complaint at the FERC against OG&E, arguing that the wholesale formula rate contract between OG&E and Arkansas Electric Cooperative Corporation (formerly between OG&E and Arkansas Valley Electric Cooperative) is unjust and unreasonable with respect to several items. After engaging in settlement discussions, OG&E and Arkansas Electric Cooperative Corporation have tentatively agreed to terms of a settlement and are jointly preparing an offer of settlement to be filed with FERC. OG&E believes the reduction in revenue will be less than $1.0 million per year.

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- Definition Describes all of the specific events that have or may impact rates and amortization of regulatory assets and liabilities (for example, pending or recently concluded regulatory proceedings). Specifics may include quantifications related to rates, costs, and earnings. Events may relate to rate moratoriums or price tags. + References No definition available. + Details
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