Southwestern Public Service Company’s Transportation Electrification Plan
Synapse was retained by the New Mexico Department of Justice (formerly the New Mexico Office of the Attorney General) to provide expert witness services in reviewing the Southwestern Public Service Company’s (SPS) Transportation Electrification Plan.
Synapse identified several issues with the plan, including the company’s proposal to recover the cost of proactive distribution feeder upgrades through a rider and the classification of program rebates as a regulatory asset. This would have allowed the company to earn a return on chargers owned and operated by customers, rather than by the utility. Synapse also made recommendations for several programmatic enhancements, such as increasing the off-peak charging percentage requirements for the Optimize Your Charge program and providing higher incentives for disadvantaged communities.
The Commission adopted several of our recommendations in its final order, including directing SPS to expense the program rebate costs, rejecting the proposal for proactive feeder upgrades, and supporting the 80 percent off-peak charging requirement for Optimize Your Charge.