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On February 8, the American Public Gas Association sent a letter to the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) addressing a proposed moratorium on new commercial and industrial natural gas service connections in Los Angeles County. The moratorium was developed by the CPUC as a means to address potential shortages from areas that would rely on the Aliso Canyon Natural Gas Storage Facility for service. The CPUC has communicated that the moratorium is being proposed to ensure reliability for existing customers and would last until March 31, which is the end of the natural gas heating season.

In the letter, APGA states that, “The direct use of natural gas today provides relief for our congested and stressed electrical infrastructure as well as primary energy for on-site, back-up generators during grid outages.” The letter also communicates that a diversity of delivery mechanisms (pipelines and electric transmission) and fuel sources is an important component towards enhancing our energy reliability and resiliency.

The CPUC met on February 8 and delayed action on the resolution. Given that the next meeting of the CPUC is scheduled for March 1, it is unclear what, if any, action may be taken on the proposed resolution. A copy of APGA’s letter to the CPUC can be found on the APGA website. For questions on this article, please contact Dave Schryver of APGA staff by phone at 202-464-2742 or by email at dschryver@apga.org.