Who should own utility poles? N.H. state regulators are trying to decide in one big case.

For those who’re in Eversource’s service territory, the utility poles in your space may quickly change possession.

The Public Utilities Fee held a listening to Tuesday on a controversial deal between the state’s largest electrical utility and telecommunications firm Consolidated Communications, which supplies web, TV and cellphone service in New Hampshire.

On the finish of hours of testimony over the course of two hearings on the sale of most of the state’s utility poles, Patrick McHugh, an legal professional representing Consolidated Communications, mentioned state regulators’ jobs had been simple.

“There’s a elementary query for the fee, and that’s: who ought to personal the poles?” he mentioned.

That’s an essential query, events concerned agree, as a result of protecting the poles protected and the timber round them trimmed permits utility prospects to get steady electrical energy and phone service.

However the case earlier than the PUC is extra sophisticated than simply possession. The state’s client advocate and the Division of Vitality say ratepayers would lose out in a deal Eversource and Consolidated have requested state regulators to approve. Lots of the particulars of that deal are confidential, pending a remaining resolution by the Public Utilities Fee about whether or not the acquisition worth and different info ought to be public.

Tree-trimming fights

Proper now, Eversource and Consolidated personal most of the poles in Eversource’s territory collectively. However the firms have had disputes over who ought to pay for trimming the timber across the poles. Consolidated stopped paying for sustaining the timber in 2019, leading to hundreds of thousands of {dollars} in unpaid “vegetation administration” payments from Eversource.

Now, Eversource desires to purchase all the poles. Jessica Ralston, an legal professional representing

Eversource on the listening to, mentioned it will be good for Eversource to personal the poles as a result of it will enhance the reliability of electrical energy service.

“Clients will profit by an enchancment of reliability and resiliency of the pole stock,” she mentioned. “Outages and restoration prices may be prevented by a extra proactive inspection and alternative of poles, so the poles are able to withstanding bodily influence.”

New Hampshire’s client advocate Don Kreis, who argues on behalf of ratepayers on the Fee, agrees Eversource can be a superb proprietor of the poles.

“The electrical firm is an important person of utility poles,” he informed NHPR. “Its electrical wires are on the high of the pole and essentially the most weak to climate associated disruptions. And so it is smart for the electrical firms to have a major duty for sustaining them and changing them.”

However Kreis mentioned the deal Eversource has negotiated with Consolidated Communications is simply too costly for ratepayers, who may find yourself footing the invoice.

Ratepayer considerations

“This deal and the phrases of this deal are extraordinarily disadvantageous to ratepayers as a result of the corporate is solely making too many concessions to Consolidated,” Kreis mentioned within the listening to.

David Wiesner, Authorized Director for the New Hampshire Division of Vitality, additionally expressed reservations. He mentioned the Division shouldn’t be against Eversource proudly owning the poles, however elements of the transaction – together with the acquisition worth, and the way the businesses will resolve the dispute over the cash Consolidated owes Eversource in tree trimming bills – gave him pause.

“It is these particular deal phrases which have the potential to adversely have an effect on Eversource prospects,” he mentioned.

Confidentiality disputes

The acquisition worth for the poles was held confidential within the listening to, pending a remaining resolution by the Public Utilities Fee about whether or not that info ought to be public information.

Eversource confirmed by testimony that the acquisition worth is above the online e-book worth of the poles – how a lot the poles are price in Consolidated’s accounting information.

Eversource and Consolidated have requested the Fee to maintain particulars of the sale confidential, saying every firm may lose out on future negotiations if these had been made public.

Kreis pushed again on that request, saying the knowledge – together with the acquisition worth of the poles, which may very well be foisted on Eversource ratepayers – ought to be public.

The Public Utilities Fee issued an order in April saying the acquisition worth ought to be public info, however different elements of the settlement can keep confidential. Consolidated and New Hampshire’s Shopper Advocate have each filed motions opposing that order. These motions are nonetheless awaiting a choice from the Fee.

A greater deal?

In closing statements, Don Kreis informed commissioners he hoped they’d reject the proposed settlement, so Eversource may return and negotiate a greater deal for the poles.

However that suggestion sparked a rebuttal from Consolidated’s Patrick McHugh, who expressed frustration with these questioning the standard of the deal, asking if Consolidated ought to “simply give the poles away.”

“It’s straightforward to second-guess and say ‘we don’t like this deal, so go determine methods to do it elsewhere,’ and a method you are able to do it’s preserve urgent the difficulty, sue for the way lengthy it takes,” McHugh mentioned. He referenced ongoing litigation between that firm and the New Hampshire Electrical Co-op, which is suing Consolidated over points together with unpaid tree-trimming payments.

That lawsuit, filed in 2020, alleges Consolidated owes the Co-op greater than $2 million on previous vegetation administration invoices.

“Is that basically one thing the fee desires Eversource to actually do?” he requested.