AGR 00001
Published On: 11/10/2011

Question: Does the person who executes the Master Supply Agreement need to be the Officer who signs, or the Authorized Representative or Delegate indicated in, the Part 1 and Part 2 Applications?

Answer: The person who signs the Master SSO Agreement does not need to be the same person who has been designated as the Authorized Representative during the auction process.  The signatory needs to be someone how has the authority to legally bind the Supplier so that the Supplier complies with the Representations and Warranties in Section 8.2 of the Master SSO Supply Agreement.

AGR 00002
Published On: 11/10/2011

Question: Are SSO suppliers responsible for Network Integration Transmission Service (NITS) charges?

Answer: As outlined in Section 3.2 of the Master SSO Supply Agreement, Duke Energy Ohio, Inc. is responsible for NITS charges effective January 1, 2012.

AGR 00003 (revised 12/15/2014)
Published On: 11/17/2011

Question: Please explain the relationship between Default Damages and Settlement Amount in the context of the last sentence of the definition of "Settlement Amount" in the Master SSO Supply Agreement. That sentence states: "The calculation of Settlement Amount with respect to an Early Termination shall exclude Default Damages calculated pursuant to Section 7.3(a)."

Answer: Default Damages and Settlement Amount are two separate calculations that take different factors into account (see definition of both in the Master SSO Supply Agreement).  In the event of a termination, both would be included in the calculation of a Termination Payment.

AGR 00004 (revised 04/01/2015)
Published On: 11/22/2011

Question: On what volume of load will the SSO Supplier be paid as described in 6.1 (a) of the Master SSO Supply Agreement? It is clear that the SSO Supplier will be responsible for serving the SSO Supply which includes transmission and distribution losses; however it is not clear if the SSO Supplier will be paid on this same volume or the smaller metered value.

Answer: SSO suppliers are required to deliver sufficient energy to the DEOK delivery point to meet all SSO load requirements. Suppliers will be paid for all MWh delivered to the DEOK delivery point. The load at the DEOK delivery point represents customer metered load plus distribution losses ( or "SSO Load") and will be the basis for financial settlements to SSO suppliers.

AGR 00005 (revised 12/15/2014)
Published On: 11/28/2011

Question: Attachment F of the Master SSO Supply Agreement shows ID#1371 and 1376 as the responsibility of the SSO Supplier. On the PJM website, under the 'DEOK LSE Billing Line Item Transfer Inventory', these items are documented as a Duke Energy Ohio, Inc. responsibility. Which is correct? Will the SSO Supplier be responsible for these two items?

Answer: Wholesale suppliers will be responsible for the Line Item Nos. 1371 (Day-ahead Operating Reserve for Load Response) and 1376 (Balancing Operating Reserve for Load Response). Duke Energy Ohio, Inc. will be responsible for charges that result from PJM’s implementation of its revised Economic Load Response program, in compliance with FERC Order No. 745. 

AGR 00006
Published On: 12/02/2011

Question: Section 7.1(i) of the Master SSO Supply Agreement states: An “Event of Default” shall mean with respect to a Party (the “Defaulting Party”) the occurrence of any of the following: (i) PJM holds Duke Energy Ohio, Inc. responsible for the provision of SSO Supply, including Energy, Capacity and Ancillary Services, to meet the Defaulting Party’s SSO Supplier Responsibility Share under this Agreement. Under what scenario might this occur?

Answer: Under the referenced provision of the Master SSO Supply Agreement, if an SSO supplier fails to deliver and PJM holds Duke Energy Ohio, Inc. responsible for delivering energy, capacity, and ancillary services, the SSO supplier is in default.

AGR 00007 (revised 04/01/2015)
Published On: 12/02/2011

Question: Section 3.7 of the Master SSO Supply Agreement states that each SSO Supplier shall be deemed a Load Serving Entity for the duration of the Delivery Period pursuant to the PJM Agreements and Legal Authorities. Legal Authorities is defined as "generally, those federal and Ohio statutes and administrative rules and regulations that govern the electric utility industry in Ohio." Do SSO Suppliers need to take any action to be qualified by the state of Ohio? Does this language require any specific approvals?

Answer: Duke Energy Ohio, Inc. requires that suppliers be qualified to do business in Ohio and defers to suppliers to ascertain what steps they may need to complete to obtain such status.

AGR 00008
Published On: 12/05/2011

Question: In reference to response GEN 00010, if a customer returns to Duke Energy Ohio, Inc., will the Supplier be made whole in instances when the LMP is greater than the Supplier Fixed Price as it relates to that returned customer load?

Answer: No.  SSO suppliers are responsible for supplying all SSO load associated with existing and returning SSO customers.  Suppliers will be paid a price based on the auction regardless of the prevailing LMP.

AGR 00009
Published On: 12/06/2011

Question: Please identify the Section in the SSO Supply Agreement that agrees with the AGR00004 response that the SSO Supplier will be compensated for all MWh delivered (which includes transmission and distribution losses) to the DEOK delivery point.

Answer: Section 3.1(f) of the Master SSO Supply Agreement states that the SSO Supplier shall be responsible for all transmission and distribution losses. Reference is also made to Section 3.2(a) of the Master SSO Supply Agreement.

AGR 00010
Published On: 12/08/2011

Question: Is it expected that the Declaration of Authority form is to be executed with the Master SSO Supply agreement?

Answer: Yes.  The Declaration of Authority is to be executed by SSO Suppliers along with the Master SSO Supply Agreement.

AGR 00011
Published On: 12/08/2011

Question: Suppose 105 MW must be generated for a customer to receive 100 MW and PJM would derate the 105 MW to 103 MW. The supplier will be responsible for costs covering 105 MW. On which amount will a supplier be paid?

Answer: Please see updated response to AGR 00004.

AGR 00012
Published On: 12/08/2011

Question: In the definition of "Settlement Amount", the Master SSO Supply Agreement makes reference to an "estimated SSO Load" based on the "most recent load switching report filed by Duke Energy Ohio, Inc. with the PUCO." Could you point to or provide the current most recent load switching report as an example? Also, what is the frequency (monthly, quarterly, annual) that this report will be published?

Answer: The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) publishes switching reports on a quarterly basis. The reports can be accessed via the PUCO's website, www.puco.ohio.gov, under the tabs for Electricity, Industry, Electric Technical Reports, Electric Customer Choice Switch Rates.

AGR 00013
Published On: 12/09/2011

Question: Are there any fees associated with the administration of the auction (tranche fees)?

Answer: Costs associated with conducting the auctions for SSO service will be recovered through Duke Energy Ohio, Inc.'s Rider SCR. Reference is made to the Stipulation and Recommendation filed on October 24, 2011, in PUCO Case No. 11-3549-EL-SSO.

AGR 00015
Published On: 12/09/2011

Question: From the PJM Sample bill, the SSO Suppliers will be responsible for Black Start services. Will the Black Start revenue requirements for the DEOK Zone be published before the auction? If not, are there any preliminary numbers or estimates available?

Answer: Black Start revenue requirements for the DEOK zone will not be published prior to the auction. No preliminary numbers or estimates are available.

AGR 00016
Published On: 12/13/2011

Question: Section 6.1 suggests that all payments will be made on the first business day after the 19th day of each calendar month. This appears to be in conflict with Section 3.6 where payments must be made within 3 days of the allocation invoice. How do the two sections resolve with each other?

Answer: The provisions are not in conflict. Section 3.6 of the Master SSO Supply Agreement references a Default Allocation Assessment imposed upon Duke Energy Ohio, Inc. by PJM and Duke Energy Ohio, Inc.'s right, in its discretion, to invoice suppliers for their responsible share. Section 6.1 of the Master SSO Supply Agreement concerns invoices that will be submitted for each Billing Period.

AGR 00017
Published On: 12/13/2011

Question: Section 9 and 10 of the Master SSO Supply Agreement could be read in conjunction to require the SSO Supplier to indemnify other SSO Suppliers against third-party liability for Duke Energy Ohio, Inc.’s actions. Is this the intent of the section?

Answer: No, the intent is that a party will provide indemnification for its own actions, as more fully described in Section 10.   

AGR 00018
Published On: 12/13/2011

Question: Will the winning SSO suppliers be subject to the Ohio Commercial Activity Tax (or “CAT")?

Answer: Duke Energy Ohio, Inc. cannot provide tax advice to auction participants.

AGR 00019
Published On: 05/15/2012

Question: Is the potential load requirement bound by +/- 10% of historical load? If so, is that +/- 10% of the monthly aggregate, or annual total, or hourly peaks?

Answer: No.  The load obligation associated with each tranche is 1% of the SSO load.

AGR 00021 (revised 04/29/2015)
Published On: 04/29/2015

Question: Suppliers will deliver sufficient energy to meet all SSO requirements to the DEOK Load Zone, designated by PJM as Pnode ID number 124076095, determined pursuant to the applicable PJM Tariff, rules, agreements and procedures. We understand that PJM, as of June 1, 2015, will be charging all LSEs or agents of LSEs the Residual Aggregate Zone of corresponding Physical Load Zone. Since there will be a difference between the DEOK Load Zone (Pnode ID 124076095) and DEOK Residual Aggregate Zone (Pnode 1069452904), how will you true-up the suppliers for this difference?

Answer:

PJM currently handles the true-up and/or differences for all suppliers between the DEOK Load Zone “Nodal” Pricing and the DEOK “Aggregate” Zone Pricing. For the period beginning June 1, 2015, PJM will continue to handle the true-up and/or differences between “Nodal” and “Residual” Pricing. Additional information is available through the PJM website (http://www.pjm.com/markets-and-operations/energy/residual-metered-load-pricing.aspx).

AGR 00022
Published On: 05/01/2015

Question: What are the seasonal billing factors for SSO Load awarded in the May 14, 2015 auction?

Answer: The seasonal factors for the May 2015 auction are as follows:

Summer Billing Factor - 1.0524

Winter Billing Factor - 0.9704

Consistent with the Bidding Rules, these seasonal factors will be constant for the duration of the Master SSO Supply Agreement.

AGR 00023
Published On: 10/09/2015

Question: Attachment F (Sample PJM Invoice) of the Master Agreement lists capacity related items #1600-1688 as "N/A" for the responsible party -- can you please clarify what the treatment of capacity is under this RFP? The Bidder Info Session PPT lists Capacity as a responsibility of the SSO Supplier.

Answer: As indicated in the Master SSO Supply Agreement (MSA), Duke Energy Ohio is procuring full requirements service, which includes capacity. (See Article III, Section 3.1, Obligations of Supplier, and Article I, Definition of SSO Supply.) The charges reflected on the PJM Sample Invoice having an “N/A” designation are not applicable to the transactions contemplated under the MSA. This is not to say that a supplier would not be assessed these charges by PJM in certain circumstances. But such charges are not anticipated here.

AGR 00024
Published On: 10/26/2015

Question: How does the Master SSO Supply Agreement address the possibility of PIPP load being aggregated by the Ohio Development Services Agency pursuant to the enactment of Ohio HB 64?

Answer: There are two provisions of the Master SSO Supply Agreement that would address PIPP aggregation under Ohio HB 64:

4.6 Compliance with Governmental Directives

Each SSO Supplier acknowledges and agrees that Duke Energy Ohio may need to act in response to directives by a Governmental Authority that may affect SSO Supply or SSO Load. Each SSO Supplier agrees to cooperate fully with Duke Energy Ohio in order to comply with such directives.

12.3 General

This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement between the Parties relating to the subject matter contemplated by this Agreement and supersedes all prior communications and proposals (oral or written). This Agreement shall be considered for all purposes as prepared through the joint efforts of the Parties and shall not be construed against one Party or the other as a result of the preparation, substitution, submission or other event of negotiation, drafting or execution hereof. This Agreement shall not impart any rights enforceable by any third party (other than a permitted successor or assignee bound to this Agreement). No waiver by a Party of any default by the other Party shall be construed as a waiver of any other default. Any provision declared or rendered unlawful by any applicable Governmental Authority or deemed unlawful because of a statutory change will not otherwise affect the remaining lawful obligations that arise under this Agreement.The headings used herein are for convenience and reference purposes only.

AGR 00025
Published On: 08/31/2023

Question: Section 12.8 of the supply agreement states that the SSO Supplier is not responsible for Ohio Sales and Use Tax, but is responsible for all other taxes. What other taxes is the supply agreement referring to?

Answer: Sales tax is typically structured differently than most other taxes.  The seller has a responsibility to collect it from the customer and remit it as an agent of the Department of Revenue.  This responsibility can only be relieved if the customer provides an exemption certificate.  Most other taxes (Income Tax, Commercial Activity Tax, Excise Tax, Payroll Tax) are imposed directly upon the seller.  The purpose of the contract language is to clarify that the SSO Supplier is responsible for all taxes imposed directly upon it.