16. SONGS Cost Recovery

Aglet proposes to adjust SDG&E's attrition year revenue requirements to reflect scheduled refueling outages at SONGS 2 and 3 based on the adopted estimate in Edison's recent rate case. In D.04-07-022, we:

"approved (Edison's) proposed flexible outage schedule ratemaking mechanism for SONGS 2 & 3 and a per-outage O&M estimate of $52.462 million (2000 dollars, 100% share). A component of that mechanism is (Edison's) proposal to forecast outage O&M costs in annual (post-test year) filings based upon the adopted outage cost estimate and a forecast of the number of outages expected to occur in the next year." (Mimeo, p. 276.)

Aglet recommends that the Commission should adopt the same method and dollar amount found reasonable in Edison's rate case, adjusted for SDG&E's 20% ownership share.

We further required that:

"in any (post-test year) filing in which it includes costs for SONGS outages that it forecasts will occur in the following year, (Edison) shall include a proposal for refunding to ratepayers the costs of any outage that was forecast and included in rates but did not occur in that year.

O&M costs were specifically excluded from our procurement proceedings,⁹¹ and we will be consistent here, as we were by adopting SONGS O&M expenses in Phase 1. We will adopt a comparable requirement for SDG&E, so that it may include its proportional share of O&M costs in its post-test year ratemaking filings and it shall also refund any costs that were not incurred.

⁹¹ D.02-10-062, mimeo p. 61, in Rulemaking 01-10-024.