The commission approved a final order last month, granting preapproval to Oklahoma Gas and Electric to spend $506 million on new energy projects, but denied its request to bill customers for construction.
In a Nov. 24 filing, consumer groups AARP and Oklahoma Industrial Energy Consumers asked the commission to reopen the case because they say the new projects could result in rates that are “excessive and unreasonable.”
The projects include two natural gas turbines at the Horseshoe Lake Power Plant in Oklahoma County, a purchase power agreement from a gas-fired generation facility in Pittsburg County and a contract with a battery energy storage system facility near Woodward. The groups wrote the investments wouldn’t lead to the “lowest reasonable cost” for consumers.
The commission voted Thursday to deny their request. Commissioner Brian Bingman said the regulators didn’t require more discussion.
“ I think we've got enough information that we don't want to rehash any of this anymore,” he said.
Bingman and Chairman Kim David voted to deny the consumer group’s motion. Commissioner Todd Hiett voted to reconsider.
“Horseshoe Lake was not the lowest cost alternative that OG&E had at its disposal,” he said. “Because of that, there would've needed to be further protections around the Horseshoe Lake.”
Hiett said the units could still be approved with more protections, but he wanted to reopen the case.
The vote was the latest in a months-long series of meetings related to OG&E’s purchases. On Dec. 4, the commission heard a request from the utility asking Hiett to recuse himself from further actions on the case.
In a Nov. 26 filing, OG&E said Hiett was biased against the company because of remarks the commissioner made during a previous meeting. Hiett had accused the company of rewriting some of the regulators’ final order.
“They're trying to capture this regulatory body, utilize this regulatory body through an order to promote propaganda, and this order should be rejected on those grounds alone,” he said on Nov. 13.
The filing from OG&E said Hiett was not impartial in his actions on the case.
“Commissioner Hiett should recuse himself from any further vote in this proceeding for his prior prejudicial and inflammatory statements through which he has shown a clear animus against OG&E, depriving OG&E of the fair and unbiased participation by Commissioner Hiett,” the document reads.
The commissioner said there is no legal basis for the request and declined to recuse himself.
“ I find it to be very disturbing that a regulated utility would take action to intimidate and squelch the voice of one of its regulators for simply doing his job,” Hiett said on Dec. 4.
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