Finally closed a case I've been working for 18 months. Major manufacturing facility in Memphis was being billed under GSA-3 instead of the correct GSA-4 schedule since 2018. MLGW had them classified wrong due to some transformer ownership confusion. The rate difference was massive - we're talking nearly $4,000 per month in overpayments. Client is thrilled and I'm still buzzing from this one. Anyone else had success with MLGW tariff reclassifications lately?
Just recovered $127K from MLGW on a manufacturing plant - biggest win yet!
Congrats Amir! That's a fantastic recovery. Georgia Power gave me similar headaches last year with a client who should have been on Schedule TOU-GSD-8 instead of GSD-7. Took 14 months to get them to admit the error. The key was proving the load factor calculations were wrong from day one. Did you have to go through their formal dispute process or did they cave once you showed the documentation?
Nice work! I've had good luck with Nashville Electric on similar issues. The trick is getting someone in their commercial rates department who actually understands the tariff language. Half the time their own CSRs don't know the difference between primary and secondary voltage classifications. $127K is serious money - bet that client is happy!
Derek - they initially pushed back hard and wanted to limit it to 12 months. I had to pull out the big guns and reference their own tariff filing with the Tennessee Public Service Commission from 2017 that clearly defined the voltage thresholds. Once their legal department got involved, they agreed to the full retroactive adjustment. Ed - you're so right about the CSR knowledge gap. I swear some of them think demand charges are optional!
Amir, was this the Kimberly-Clark plant or one of the auto suppliers? I've been tracking a similar issue with TVA wholesale rates affecting some of my Knoxville clients. The transformer ownership piece is crucial - did MLGW own the primary equipment or was it customer-owned? That distinction can make or break these cases.
Excellent work on this recovery! The MLGW tariff structure can be tricky, especially with their recent updates to the GSA schedules. Gary raises a good point about transformer ownership - that's been a recurring issue across multiple Tennessee utilities lately. Have you documented this case for future reference? These precedents can be goldmines for similar situations.
This gives me hope for a case I'm working with Santee Cooper. Similar transformer ownership confusion has a client paying about $2,800 monthly in what I believe are incorrect charges. The challenge is their tariff language is more ambiguous than most. Amir, any advice on building the technical case when the utility's own engineers seem confused about their own rates?
George, document everything and get them to put their position in writing. When utilities can't clearly explain their own tariff application, that's your opening. I'd also recommend pulling their rate case testimony from the PSC - often the utility's own experts contradict what their billing department is doing. The key is being more prepared than they are, which frankly isn't that hard most of the time.