Late last year, Ameren Missouri and Three Rivers Electric Cooperative notified the Missouri Public Service Commission they were jointly seeking approval of a territorial agreement concerning some Cole County customers.
This week, the PSC set an intervention deadline in the case.
According to the PSC, Ameren seeks to sell a portion of its electric system to Three Rivers. Ameren also seeks PSC authority to transfer 258 of its current customers to Three Rivers while Three Rivers seeks to transfer approximately 270 of its current customers to Ameren. The application also seeks PSC approval of an electric territorial agreement between Ameren and Three Rivers, which establishes exclusive service territories for each in portions of Cole and Osage counties.
Officials from both companies said this was being done to address future growth of electrical infrastructure.
If approved, Ameren would get customers currently served by Three Rivers around the Rockridge and Frog Hollow Road areas. Three Rivers would get customers currently served in the Wardsville area.
There are locations in these areas where there are two sets of electric infrastructure, and with the high cost of maintaining such structures, the companies seek to streamline service and reliability in the area. They also told the PSC that having two separate infrastructures can cause concerns for first responders when they are called out to emergencies such as structure fires and having to determine which electric service is providing electricity to a structure. Also, utility crews making repairs for power outages need to be certain which power lines need repairs.
Ameren acknowledged Three Rivers has a greater strength in rural areas and Ameren has more strength in urban areas in Jefferson City.
Both companies believe more development will be taking place with the construction of Capital City High School near Frog Hollow and a new high school for the Blair Oaks R-2 School District.
The Blair Oaks school district currently gets electric service through Ameren and Three Rivers at different facilities.
Applications to intervene and participate in this case must be filed no later than July 10 with the secretary of the Missouri Public Service Commission, P.O. Box 360, Jefferson City, MO, 65102, or by using the Commission's Electronic Filing and Information System (EFIS) at www.psc.mo.gov.
Individual citizens wishing to comment may contact the Office of the Public Counsel (Governor Office Building, 200 Madison St., Suite 650, P.O. Box 2230, Jefferson City, MO, 65102-2230, telephone 1-866-922-2959 or email [email protected]) or the Public Service Commission staff (P.O. Box 360, Jefferson City, MO, 65102, telephone 1-800-392-4211 or email [email protected]).
The Office of the Public Counsel is a separate state agency that represents the general public in matters before the commission.