August 2, 2022
The Division of Public Utilities’ pipeline safety section recently received a perfect audit score from the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Safety Materials Administration. The perfect score helps ensure the program remains predominantly funded by federal money. The section is responsible for inspecting intrastate natural gas operators, including Dominion Energy. Led by Al Zadeh, the team includes engineers Jimmy Betham and Logan Voellinger, and program specialist Connie Hendricks.
An additional success for the Division of Public Utilities includes a recent case involving Rocky Mountain Power’s latest Integrated Resource Plan (IRP). The Public Service Commission agreed with the Division of Public Utilities that Rocky Mountain Power’s IRP was deficient because it failed to consider all proven resource types and included speculative resources. In some cases, the resources do not even exist yet. The IRP is intended to use forecasts of loads and resource costs to establish a preferred set of resources for the next 10-20 years.