WHO ELSE WANTS TO KNOW ABOUT TENASKA/PUB DEAL?

By Juan Montoya

After we were unceremoniously rebuffed by the Brownsville Public Utility Board and its high-priced  counsel to get a gander at the agreement between electric-power supplier Tenaska and the city-owned utility, we have learned that others have also requested details of the agreement.

The lawyers said it would take at least two months before we could expect the Texas Attorney general's opinion htye requested before we learn what the PUB and city officials have committed us t ay over the span of the agreement, however long that might be.

That agreement - as far as we have been led to believe - will result in PUB financing an 800 megawatt capacity electric producing plant fueled by natural gas at an estimated cost of some $200 million to be paid by rate hikes of utility users.

That agreement, according to what little was told to residents at the mediafest press conference, will give PUB a one-quarter stake in the plant and the production of electricity, city and PUB officials said. However, they did not specify whether any "incentives" like tax abatements or special considerations will be going to the private energy company in return.

In fact, there was never any mention on how the taxation scheme will work if the city owns one-quarter of the plant and the private utility the other third.

During the press conference, PUB and city officials stated that the city would require an unspecified amount of electric energy in the future as a justification for the construction of the plant.

Enter Sebastian Krynski, an expert who develops  risk assessment and risk management models for a variety of clients, including the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and is responsible for development of short- and long-term electric demand forecasting models at ICF,  a firm that specializes in analytics from research and analysis through implementation and improvement in the energy industry since 1969.

Krynski, on the ICF webpage, is described as being an expert at analyzing "electric power market modeling and power asset valuation for private equity and power plant developers. He develops risk assessment and risk management models for a variety of clients, including the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and he is responsible for development of short- and long-term electric demand forecasting models at ICF. 

Mr. Krynski has an M.S. in Applied Economics from Johns Hopkins University and a B.A. in Economics from the University of Virginia."

His latest paper delivered during a presentation in January was titled "The Future of U.S. Electric Demand Growth," a "webinar" he delivered with his wholesale power expert partner Judah Rose and  discussed the current electric demand outlook in key U.S. markets in light of long-term declining electric demand growth trends, the changing relationship between economic activity and electric demand growth, recent weather patterns, and growth in energy efficiency programs. 

Critical issues discussed in this "webinar" included:
*Recent electric demand growth patterns
*The impact of economic activity and weather on peak demand and energy growth
*The impact of demand side management on electric growth
*Prospects for future electric demand growth in light of demographic and economic forecasts

We have reached out to Krynski hoping he can enlighten us on the veracity of the PUB/Tenaska agreement before we swallow the bait of the $200 million deal reached without any type of meaningful input from the ratepayers. If he's interested in this, we'd love to know what he thinks of the arrangement.

We'll keep you posted if we hear from Mr. Krynski on his take of this apparent sweetheart deal reached between PUB and its electric-energy provider.