PUCO: Submeter company found not to be acting as public utility

The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) found Nationwide Energy Partners, LLC (NEP) is not a “public utility” under Ohio law in its operations at five apartment complexes in Ohio. Instead, the PUCO found NEP was operating as an agent of the landlord.

In Wednesday’s opinion, the Commission found that NEP is not engaged in the business of supplying electricity and does not qualify as an “electric light company” or “public utility” under Ohio law in its operations at five specific apartment complexes in Ohio.

On Sept. 24, 2021, AEP Ohio filed a formal complaint with the PUCO alleging NEP is acting as a public utility by engaging in “submetering” on behalf of landlords or building owners, NEP’s operations violate Ohio’s Certified Territories Act, and NEP is supplying competitive retail electric service without the proper PUCO certification. NEP denied all allegations.

NEP filed counterclaims alleging, among other things, that AEP Ohio was in violation of its tariffs when it refused to convert several apartment complexes to master-metered service. The Commission found in favor of NEP’s claim that AEP Ohio was unreasonable when it denied service to a landlord specifically due to NEP’s involvement as a third-party agent acting on behalf of the landlord.

In its order, the Commission recognized tenants served by a landlord’s submetering arrangement are not afforded similar consumer protections as those who are direct customers of a public utility. As such, the Commission emphasized it has authority to set reasonable terms and conditions on utilities providing master meter service to ensure that users of that service, such as landlords, are providing it to the ultimate end user in a manner which is safe and consistent with the public interest.

The Commission therefore ordered AEP Ohio to propose new electric reselling tariffs requiring:

• disclosure in landlord-tenant leases to submetered customers about their rights.

• landlord’s charges for resale of electricity must be the same or lower than the total bill for a similarly situated customer served by the local utility’s standard service offer.

• when disconnecting a tenant for nonpayment, landlords must follow the same disconnection standards applicable under PUCO regulations.

A copy of the 166-page opinion and order is available online at PUCO.ohio.gov by clicking on the link to Docketing Information System and searching for case 21-990-EL-CSS.