The Commonwealth Court has ruled that electricity distribution companies may purchase default electricity generation service for their customers from a single source, despite statutory language that requires default service plans to include a "prudent mix" of spot market purchases, long-term contracts and short-term contracts.
In Popowsky v. Public Utility Commission, an en banc panel ruled 5-2 to affirm the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission's finding that requiring Pike County Light & Power Co., to purchase a fixed-price hedge contract for default electricity generation service could result in higher costs to consumers than purchasing service solely from the more volatile spot market.
