 |
|
 |
|
|
NIPSCO told to keep hubs openINDIANAPOLIS — The state ruled Wednesday afternoon that Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO) maintenance hubs in LaPorte, Hammond, Plymouth, LaGrange and Crown Point must remain open. Hailed as a huge victory by an attorney in the case, LaPorte County Attorney Shaw Friedman, the ruling comes 3½ years after the utility company announced it would be closing five local operating areas in 2002 as part of a consolidation plan. “We’re pleased that the IURC has not permitted NIPSCO to go forward with its consolidation plan. As a result NIPSCO has not been able to pocket $20 million over the past three and a half years, but has been forced to use that money to serve ratepayers,” Friedman said in a press release. The facilities, including at 1501 W. Ind. 2, LaPorte, will be open for an indefinite amount of time. Though LaPorte, Plymouth and Michigan City worked on their own to hammer out agreements with NIPSCO back in 2003 to ensure LaPorte and Plymouth facilities would remain open for at least three more years, the three communities were included in the IURC order. “We are pleased about the decision since it will maintain NIPSCO’s service and reliability in our area,” Mayor Leigh Morris said this morning. NIPSCO’s consolidation plans were blocked in March 2002 when a court injunction prevented the company from closing the facilities. The matter has been tied up with the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission. The NIPSCO facilities store everything from utility poles to transformers. NIPSCO has long argued that its area service model, which has line and gas workers responding to local repair calls from their homes, improves service. This effort, combined with shutting down maintenance facilities, meant cutting staff and reducing operating expenses. “We’ve contended from the start that this was driven by an effort by NIPSCO to cut costs, some $140,000 a week, as opposed to providing improved service. You can’t close maintenance facilities, cut staff and somehow improve service,” Friedman said. The 58-page order from the IURC states that NIPSCO, as part of its consolidation model, didn’t present any evidence of benchmarking standards or best practices from other utilities that showed closing service centers would improve overall service to customers, Friedman said. “The area service model was never proven it could work. I think the commission saw through it,” said Barry Norvell, United Steelworkers of America (USWA) Local 12775 president. According to the agreement, the IURC is permitting NIPSCO to continue to utilize its area service model. Friedman pointed out that the IURC’s 2002 order, backed up by an injunction issued by LaPorte Superior Court 2 Judge Steven King, has been upheld by the Indiana Court of Appeals. “This case was being watched around the country for what right a regulatory commission has to halt a utility in its tracks on a service plan that wouldn’t help customers. The IURC’s earlier decision and now this final order stands for the proposition that the IURC ‘will not wait for negative impacts to service quality to occur’ before acting on a complaint,” Friedman said. NIPSCO was still reviewing the order this morning and declined to comment. |