Texas Electricity Company Texas Power Explains TDSPs

On August 11, 2010, In General Topics, By ehicks

If you’ve ever called Texas Power before to inquire about an outage in your area, or claim your meter was misread, you’ve likely heard the letters “T D S P” emerge from our mouths. As often as we are saying this, we imagine there might be some confusion on what exactly a TDSP is and why it makes a difference in your electric service.

When the Texas Electric Market was deregulated back in 2002, it allowed entrants to start serving customers by buying, selling and billing electricity on their behalf. The whole purpose of electric deregulation in Texas was to create a healthy dose of competition amongst Retail Electric Providers (REPs) and to improve pricing, service and choice for Texans.

Prior to deregulation, electric companies owned the whole sha-bang; generation, transmission and the retail billing process. To keep the “legacy” companies from having an unfair advantage, the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) required that these companies sell off their generation and transmission divisions.

Thus, Transmission Distribution Service Providers (TDSPs) were born. TDSPs own and/or operate the equipment and facilities to transmit/distribute electricity in Texas. TDSPs are certified and regulated by the PUCT and are required to provide non-discriminatory access to the electric grid. TDSPs control and operate the lines, poles and meters in their respective areas and they must provide service, for a fee, to all REPs operating in that area. Currently at Texas Power, residential customers do not see TDSP’s fees as we include them in our energy price.

Since TDSPs control and operate the poles, lines and meters in deregulated service areas, the reliability of the electric grid lies with your TDSP. If you hear other Retail Electric Providers state they are more reliable than their competitors, then they must be making a statement about their internal systems and processes, since they have nothing to do with the electrical grid. This means the next time your power goes out due to forces of nature, the most expedient way to report this outage is to call your TDSP. Their telephone numbers are listed on the back page of this newsletter and can be found on your invoice. If you are not sure who your TDSP is, you can always call Texas Power and we will be happy to help you with your request.

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Additional Charges

On June 15, 2010, In General Topics, By ehicks

As a Texas resident living in a deregulated electric market, you have probably come to realize that changes often occur.  At Texas Power, we do our best to include fees associated with the transmission and distribution of electricity within your rate per kilowatt hour (kWh).  Unfortunately, it often occurs that an unexpected charge is passed through from the Transmission Distribution Service Provider (TDSP), or other agencies as identified in your Terms of Service Agreement. 

These charges may be associated with changes in transmission and distribution equipment, maintaining reliability and continuation of power or even recovery after a natural disaster.  They may also be attributed to changes in the TDSP tariff filing, which are allowed by the Public Utility Commission to be revised throughout the year.

As your retail electric provider, Texas Power is allowed to pass through these unexpected charges to the customer on the invoice.  If additional charges are passed through, they may appear as a separate line item.  This is not considered a material change to your original contract agreement and may occur with no prior notice.  When possible, Texas Power will notify you of such changes, but such changes may occur unexpectedly.

One example of this is Centerpoint’s Hurricane Ike Recovery Charge.  This will be used to replenish Centerpoint’s costs to repair transmission and distribution equipment and restore power to the 2 million plus homes affected by Hurricane Ike in 2008.  The reasonable cost of restoration was found by the Public Utilities Commission of Texas to be $662,816,820.  It is predicted that average customers can expect a charge of approximately $1.50-2.50 per month for approximately the next 14 years.  This will be passed on to the customer directly from Centerpoint, and listed as a separate line item on the customer’s invoice.  Texas Power will have no authority over or involvement with this charge other than disclosing it from Centerpoint on the customer’s Texas Power invoice.

As stated in your Terms of Service Agreement:

“Any pricing change made in response to a change in law or regulatory charges may be made without prior notice to you and is not considered a material change. Any charges incurred by Texas Power as a result of additional charges or changes in fees by the TDSP as permitted by the Public Utility Commission of Texas (“PUCT”) may be passed through to you without advanced notice, are not considered a material change and shall be listed separately on your bill.”

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Welcome to the official Texas Power Blog

On December 10, 2009, In General Topics, By admin

Collectively, Texas Power finds itself in a blended state of pride, anticipation and excitement over the newly formed Texas Power Online Blog. For one reason, there will be an immediate increase in the quality and frequency of information we can provide to both prospective and current customers. This will assuredly lead to a greater overall understanding of how Texas Power operates in a deregulated electric market as well as an opportunity to provide helpful tips to reduce your monthly bill and save some serious cash. We also look forward to entering a new format where customers will be able to have their voices heard and questions answered. After all, that’s why we’re here, loving what we do. We’re Texan true, through and through, so believe us when we say that Texas Power is

Serving Texas, Serving You!

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