1. Background

On March 29, 2010, San Diego Gas & Electric Company (SDG&E) and Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas) jointly filed Application (A.) 10-03-028 (Application) to initiate Commission review of Applicants' firm access rights (FAR) service implemented pursuant to Decision (D.) 06-12-031. The Application seeks to assist the Commission in assessing the efficacy of the FAR service to reduce scheduling uncertainty existing on the SDG&E/SoCalGas system prior to FAR implementation. The Application also requests to establish and update gas transportation rates to reflect a fully unbundled, cost-based FAR reservation and in-kind fuel charge, and various operational modifications to further streamline and improve the provision of the service.

Notice of the Application appeared in the Commission's April 2, 2010 Daily Calendar.

Protests to the Application were filed on May 3, 2010 by the Division of Ratepayer Advocates (DRA), The Utility Reform Network (TURN), Indicated Producers (IP),¹ Southern California Edison Company (SCE), Southern California Generation Coalition (SCGC), and jointly by Watson Cogeneration Company (Watson) and California Cogeneration Council (CCC). Responses to the Application were filed on April 29, 2010, by the City of Long Beach Gas & Oil Department (Long Beach), and on May 3, 2010 by Shell Energy North America (United States), L.P. (Shell).²

A prehearing conference (PHC) was held on July 22, 2010, and, pursuant to the August 19, 2010 Scoping Memo and Ruling of Assigned Commissioner and ALJ (Scoping Memo), evidentiary hearings were held on November 3 and 5, 2010. Opening briefs were filed on November 22, 2010 and the proceeding was submitted upon the filing of reply briefs on December 6, 2010.

¹ IP includes BP Energy Company, BP America Inc. (including Atlantic Richfield Company), ConocoPhillips Company, Chevron U.S.A. Inc., and Occidental Energy Marketing Inc.

² The June 18, 2010 Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ruling granted the April 29, 2010 Southwest Gas Corporation (Southwest Gas) and the May 3, 2010 Constellation NewEnergy-Gas Division, LLC, motions for party status. The July 26, 2010 ALJ ruling granted the June 24, 2010 California Manufacturers and Technology Association (CMTA) motion for party status, and Sempra LNG and RRI Energy, Inc. were granted party status at the July 22, 2010 prehearing conference. On December 3, 2010, the ALJ granted the request of RRI Energy, Inc. to be removed as a party and to grant RRI Energy Services, Inc. (RES) party status.