The Board meets on the first and third Monday of each month. Meetings begin at 1:00 p.m. and are held in the department conference room at 65 Lafayette Ave, Littleton. Board meetings are open to the public and time is allotted for public comments at each meeting.
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The regularly scheduled business meeting of the Littleton Water and Light (LWL) Board of Commissioners (BOC) began at 1:00 p.m. on Monday, September 20, 2021 in the LWL conference room. Present were Commissioner Peter Cooper, Commissioner Ralph Ross, Commissioner Linda MacNeil and Superintendent Thomas Considine.
MINUTES REVIEW:
The minutes of the September 7, 2021 regularly scheduled Commissioners meeting were reviewed. Commissioner MacNeil made a motion to accept the minutes as presented, seconded by Commissioner Cooper.
The vote was in favor of the motion 2-0-1.
Commissioner Ross did not vote as he was not present for the meeting.
CUSTOMER & PUBLIC CONCERNS:
Mr. John Simon representing Corey’s Mobile Home Park (CMHP) addressed the LWL BOC regarding a significant water leak that occur this spring within the park. Mr. Simon acknowledged and thanked the BOC for the previous credit/abatement granted (about $249) though he/they feel that it is not adequate when compared to what they had to pay. Mr. Simon stated that in the past they had received a credit amount equal to what was paid when a leak occurred.
Mr. Considine stated that any abatement credit allowed would not be at a 1 to 1 ratio. LWL incurred transmission, treatment, and delivery expenses to provide the water and there is little to no margin/mark-up to give back. The previous credit allowed was in accordance with LWL policy and past practices, it would be up to the BOC if they were to grant additional credit as this would be an exception to policy and past practice.
Commissioner Ross stated that the leak appeared to have taken place over several months and questioned why the leak was not repaired in a timely manner.
Mr. Simon stated that it was during the winter months, and it was difficult to determining where the leak was.
Following some additional discussion Mr. Simon thanked the BOC for their time and asked them to reconsider their September 7th decision and allow additional credit for CMHP towards this incident and requested the applicable LWL policy that govern this type of incident.
The BOC discussed the circumstance regarding the water leak at the CMHP and agreed that although CMHP has been treated fairly and equitable that there may still be some latitude and remain within the intent of LWL’s established policy and past practice. LWL will review the timeline (number of months in question) and compare CMHP average consumption and adjust the volume to be abated, if any. The same credit per 100 CF used previously and additional volume found would determine the revised credit amount.
SUPERINTENDENT/ GENERAL MANAGERS REPORT:
1. The first step in LWL’s long awaited voltage conversion of the South Street and Lafayette Substation overhead electrical circuits is scheduled for 8:00 a.m. tomorrow morning. The scheduled outage will affect approximately 250 residence and business in the West Main Street service territory. Lyndonville Electric was asked by LWL to provide a crew and bucket truck to augment the LWL workforce to ensure that power is restored by noon.
2. Two (2) 70-watt HPS lights were recently removed from the north side of the Curran cable suspension bridge following a report that the lights were detached from the structure. The lights were attached high above the north abutment in a location that is very difficult to access for maintenance. LWL is considering other lighting and location alternatives before replacement.
GENERAL/OTHER BUSINESS:
The BOC discussed the contents of an email provided by Daymark Energy and reviewed several graphs and budget estimates about the current cost of energy futures if LWL were to hedge its 2022 power supply resources to its target limits.
The market data and analysis provided by Daymark is showing that future energy prices (todays markets) are well above ($73/MWh) what LWL has paid in most recent energy procurements ($50/MWh) and prices are still high in 2023 and 2024. The higher prices are being attributed to excessive weather this past summer as natural gas resources were used for air conditioning instead of being used to fill reserve tanks. Other geopolitical and economic uncertainties are also contributing to higher prices.
Commissioner Ross stated that the highest risk for an open position were during the winter months especially January and February when price can fluctuate significantly. Following some additional discussion, the BOC agreed to solicit bid proposal for resources for the 2022 winter months (January through March) to mitigate potential market risk. The remainder of the resource that are below LWL hedge limits can be addressed in the spring of 2022 when and if prices trend lower.
MEETING ADJOURNMENT:
There being no further business to come before the board Commissioner Ross made a motion to adjourn the meeting, seconded by Commissioner MacNeil.
The vote was in favor of the motion 3-0-0.
Meeting adjourned at 2:20 p.m.
The regularly scheduled Commissioner’s meeting is held twice monthly on the first and third Monday, at 1:00 p.m., in the Department’s conference room.