Acronym

Term

Definition/Role

CCF

100 cubic feet

The average residential natural customer uses about 150 ccf per month during the heating season.

CEAB

Connecticut Energy Advisory Board

Prepares state energy plans and advises the legislature on energy issues.

C&I

Commercial and industrial customers

This class of electric and natural gas utility customers also includes many non-profit and governmental entities.

CHP

Combined heat and power

Systems that use the waste heat produced in the process of generating electricity for manufacturing processes, space heating, or other useful purposes. Also called cogeneration.

CMEEC

Connecticut Municipal Electric Energy Cooperative

Buys power and performs other services for the state's municipal electric utilities.

CTA

Competitive transition assessment

A charge on electric bills used to cover the electric companies' stranded costs. These are DPUC-approved costs, primarily for power plants and long-term contracts, whose continued recovery was jeopardized with the restructuring of the electric industry under PA 98-28.

DG

Distributed

generation

Small scale power production facilities, often located on a customer's premises. An example of such “customer-side DG” facility would be a generator located in a factory. In contrast, “grid-side DG” facilities are located at substations and other electric distribution facilities.

DPUC

Department of Public Utility Control

State agency that regulates electric, gas, and water companies and, to a lesser extent, telecommunications and cable TV companies.

EIA

Energy Independence

Act

State legislation passed in 2005 that provides a variety of incentives for new generation and conservation programs, among other things.

ECMB

Energy Conservation Management Board

Reviews electric company conservation plans and provides recommendations to DPUC.

FERC

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

Federal agency that regulates the wholesale electric and gas industries.

FCM

Forward Capacity Market

Auction mechanism designed to ensure that there are sufficient resources (generating capacity and demand-side measures) to meet New England's electric demand. Will be used to replace reliability must run (RMR) payments starting in 2010.

FMCC

Federally-

mandated

congestion

costs

Costs, including RMR payments made to generators, associated with congestion on the state's transmission system. In Connecticut, the FMCC component of electric bills is also used to pay for incentives under the Energy Independence Act (EIA).

GSC

Generation services charge

The part of an electric company's bill that reflects its costs in buying power on the wholesale market.

IRP

Integrated resources planning

A process for meeting projected demand for electricity or natural gas by using a mix of supply side and demand side resources, such as conservation programs.

ISO-NE

Independent System Operator-New England

The non-profit entity that administers the regional wholesale electric market.

kV

1,000 volts (kilovolt)

A volt is the unit of electric force, the equivalent of water pressure in a pipe. Most transmission lines in Connecticut operate at 115 kV or 345 kV.

kw

kilowatt

One thousand watts, or the amount of power used by ten 100 watt light bulbs.

kwh

kilowatt-hour

One thousand watts used for one hour. The average residential customer in Connecticut used about 800 kwh per month in 2005.

LDC

Local distribution company

Gas distribution company; in Connecticut they are Connecticut Natural Gas, Southern Connecticut Gas, and Yankee Gas Services.

LNG

Liquefied natural gas

Natural gas that has been liquefied by chilling it to approximately –260º F. The proposed Broadwater facility would convert LNG received by tankers back into a gas and distribute it to Long Island and New England.

LICAP

Locational installed capacity payment

A mechanism initially approved by FERC to take the place of RMRs and related payments to generators. LICAP would have provided payments to generators, based on their location in New England, for their installed capacity. Superseded by a settlement that authorized FMC and other mechanisms.

mcf

thousand cubic feet

Unit of measurement for natural gas. A typical residential customer in Connecticut uses about 94 MCF per year.

MW

megawatt

One million watts. A typical power plant has a generating capacity of 500 MW.

OCC

Office of Consumer Counsel

State agency that represents ratepayers in DPUC and FERC proceedings.

OP 4

Operating Procedure 4

Procedures ISO-NE follows when there is a capacity shortage. The procedures start with informing market participants of the shortage and ramp up to steps including shutting off power to interruptible customers and imposing voltage reductions (brown-outs).

PA 98-28

Public Act 98-28

Legislation adopted in 1998 that restructured the electric industry to allow customers to choose an electric supplier other than their electric company. Often called the “dereg bill. ”

PGA

Purchased gas adjustment

An adjustment on natural gas bills that adjusts rates up or down depending on changes in the cost of gas purchased by the LDC.

PV

Photovoltaic

Solar energy technology that converts sunlight directly into electricity.

RMR

Reliability must-run

Payments made to generators that cannot earn enough revenues on the wholesale market to cover their costs of production but whose power is needed to maintain system reliability.

RPS

Renewable Portfolio Standard

Statutory requirement that electric companies and competitive suppliers get part of their supply from renewable resources.

SBC

Systems benefit charge

Charge on electric bills used to pay for various public policy costs.

SOLR

Supplier of last resort

Service electric companies must provide to large customers who do not choose a competitive supplier. Small and medium customers receive “standard service. ”

T&D

Transmission and distribution

Electric transmission systems move power at high voltage for long distances, primarily from generating plants to substations. Distribution systems move power at lower voltages from substations to homes and businesses.