Oklahoma Gas & Electric (OG&E) filed June 18 with the Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC) a proposal for a large-load tariff that the Oklahoma City-based utility said in a press release would establish a transparent pricing and regulatory structure for large-load customers, including data centers, with robust customer protections. 

“The proposed tariff would protect existing OG&E customers from the costs of rising energy demand from large-load customers by establishing specific rates and terms and conditions. An independent review of the proposed tariff found OG&E’s customer protections to be among the most robust in the country,” according to the release.

Large-load customers would pay the following charges as part of the tariff:

Customer Protections

• Shields existing customers from increased cost by requiring large-load customers to pay their fair share
• Creates a specific charge assigned to large-load customers so that residential customers don’t bear the cost should adverse impacts occur
• Customer protections require OCC review and approval to safeguard customers

Customer Affordability 

• OG&E has proposed that large-load customers pay a monthly charge to reduce residential customer bills totaling $25-$30 million per year 
• OG&E would request the OCC to approve funds to be credited to residential customers in each rate review, depending on what may be most beneficial to residential customers at the current time

Fair Share Connection Costs

• Large-load customers pay upfront for 100% of the costs to connect to the grid.
• Other customers will never see any rate impact for these transmission and distribution infrastructure costs.

Additional terms and conditions include billing minimums, early termination and capacity reduction fees and strong financial collateral requirements. OG&E has proposed a 15-year term with a maximum five-year ramp up period. 

Next, the OCC will establish the procedural schedule to review OG&E’s proposed large-load tariff. Stakeholders and customers will have an opportunity to engage in the process, which is expected to take approximately six months.