DR 96-035
PUBLIC SERVICE COMPANY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
Special Contract No. NHPUC-127 between Praxair, Inc.
and Public Service Company of New Hampshire
Order Amending Effective Date of
Special Contract No. NHPUC-127
O R D E R N O. 22,836
January 13, 1998
APPEARANCES: Public Service Company of New Hampshire by
Gerald M. Eaton, Esq.; Sulloway and Hollis by Margaret H. Nelson,
Esq. for Praxair, Inc.; and, Eugene F. Sullivan, III, Esq. for
the Staff of the New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission.
On November 5, 1997, Praxair, Inc. (Praxair) filed a
Motion for Rehearing requesting that the Commission change one
aspect of Order No. 22,746, issued October 6, 1997, that is, the
effective date of its special contract with Public Service
Company of New Hampshire (PSNH). Order No. 22,746 approved the
revised special contract between Praxair and PSNH filed by PSNH
on February 2, 1996 and conditionally approved by the Commission
on October 21, 1996. See Order No. 22,375.
On November 17, 1997, the Commission granted Praxair's
Motion for Rehearing on the sole aspect of the proper effective
date for NHPUC-127. By Commission letter dated November 19,
1997, a hearing was scheduled for and heard on December 23, 1997.
When special contract NHPUC-127 was initially approved
on October 21, 1996, for effect November 20, 1996, the Commission
required certain corrective actions to be taken before the
contract could go into effect. Once PSNH made the required
amendments, it then had to obtain the signature of Praxair. PSNH
did not re-file NHPUC-127 with the necessary changes and
signatures for Commission approval until June 13, 1997, which the
Commission approved effective June 13, 1997. The lapse in time
was explained by PSNH as Praxair's "misunderstanding of the
status of the contractual relations" and that the changes to the
original contract were "merely an addendum" to a legally binding
agreement. Praxair's Motion for Rehearing seeks to change the
effective date of NHPUC-127 back to November 20, 1996.
In the Motion for Rehearing, Praxair states that it
will suffer an injury as a result of the change in the effective
date contained in Order No. 22,746, and that Praxair's customer,
OSRAM Sylvania, will ultimately also suffer economic hardship
based on the change in the effective date. Praxair states that
it honored its obligations under the contract by constructing two
fully automated on-site production facilities to produce liquid
and gaseous nitrogen used to supply those products to OSRAM
Sylvania. Praxair notes that absent the approval of NHPUC-127,
Praxair would not have located facilities in New Hampshire to
manufacture liquid and gaseous nitrogen.
While acknowledging responsibility in the delay of the
re-filed special contract, Praxair believes that the consequences
that result by changing the effective date are neither warranted
nor justified based on the circumstances for the delay. For
support concerning those circumstances, Praxair filed the
Affidavit of Christian D. Lenci, Energy Manager for Praxair.
Mr. Lenci states that he assumed responsibility mid-course for NHPUC-127 from his predecessor and that he was never
led to believe after the Commission's conditional approval of
NHPUC-127 that time was critical in the resubmittal of the
contract. He believed at the time that the changes amounted to
nothing more than a "simple addendum to a pre-existing, legally
binding contract, and as such, did not expedite its review."
We have reviewed the record in this proceeding,
including the Praxair Motion for Rehearing, the Affidavit by Mr.
Lenci, and the original filing. Based upon our review, we
believe it would be in the public interest to grant Praxair's
request to return the effective date of NHPUC-127 from June 13,
1997 to its original effective date of November 20, 1996.
Praxair has demonstrated that it has acted in good faith to
effectuate its commitments to its customer, OSRAM Sylvania, and
that it has done nothing intentional that would warrant a
substantial economic penalty for an administrative oversight.
Based upon the foregoing, it is hereby
ORDERED, that the effective date of Special Contract
No. NHPUC-127 between Praxair Inc. and Public Service Company of
New Hampshire shall be November 20, 1996; and it is
FURTHER ORDERED, that Public Service Company of New
Hampshire shall refund Praxair the difference between the
standard tariff rates and the special contract rates based on the
effective date of November 20, 1996.
By order of the Public Utilities Commission of New
Hampshire this thirteenth day of January, 1998.
Douglas L. Patch Bruce B. Ellsworth Susan S. Geiger
Chairman Commissioner Commissioner
Attested by:
Thomas B. Getz
Executive Director and Secretary