Quick question for anyone familiar with Oklahoma Natural Gas tariffs. I'm looking at Schedule LGS (Large General Service) and trying to understand how they calculate the monthly demand charge. The tariff says "demand shall be the maximum hourly consumption during the billing period" but then references a load factor adjustment that I can't find defined anywhere in the rate schedule. Has anyone dealt with ONG on this? My client's bills show a demand charge that's about 30% higher than what I calculate based on their hourly usage data.
Oklahoma Natural Gas tariff interpretation question
Ed, I haven't worked with ONG specifically, but that load factor adjustment sounds like it might be related to temperature correction or seasonal adjustments. A lot of gas utilities have provisions to adjust demand charges based on heating degree days or other weather factors. Have you checked if there's a separate weather normalization rider or if it's buried in the general terms and conditions section of their tariff? Sometimes these adjustments are defined in completely different sections.
Ed, Connie's probably right about the weather adjustment. PSE&G here in New Jersey has a similar provision that's easy to miss. I'd suggest calling their commercial customer service and asking specifically about the load factor calculation. Sometimes the customer service reps have internal guides that explain these calculations better than the published tariffs. If that doesn't work, you can always request a detailed bill explanation under their tariff - most utilities have to provide that if you ask formally.