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Answers to Frequently Asked Questions are provided in this section. 

The first posting of FAQs is in August. The last posting of FAQs is in the latter part of January, after bidders are registered to participate in the Auctions. From that point, questions and answers are emailed directly  to Registered Bidders and are not posted to the BGS Auction website. Questions that are not from Registered Bidders or their advisors are answered strictly as time permits.

Your use of this page (site) constitutes an acceptance of the Terms as  described in the disclaimer.

 

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FAQ-24

What is the intent of the Association and Confidential Information Rules?


The intent of the Association and Confidential Information portion of the Auction Rules is to promote the competitiveness of the auction, to uphold the integrity of the Auction Process, to prohibit collusive arrangements, and to ensure that no bidder gains superior information regarding its competitors that might affect the Auction Process. A bidder shows compliance with these rules by making a number of certifications in the Part 1 Application and the Part 2 Application. If a bidder is able to make all the certifications, the bidder complies with the Association and Confidential Information Rules. The certifications ensure that the bidder is not part of a collusive arrangement, the bidder does not gain superior information regarding its competitors that might affect the Auction Process, and the bidder is not providing to others information related to the auction or its bidding strategy.



11/21/2022, in Association and Confidential Information Rules.
FAQ-23

Can a winning BGS Supplier use another entity as an agent for its dealings with PJM?


Yes.



11/21/2022, in Association and Confidential Information Rules.
FAQ-22

If we present financial information for a Guarantor in the Part 1 Application and we are qualified on that basis, can we change the entity upon whose financial standing we are relying at a later time?


No.  The Auction Manager provides to each Qualified Bidder a notification of qualification that includes the requirements for presenting pre-auction security with the Part 2 Application. These requirements are based on the financial information provided in the Part 1 Application.  In particular, a Qualified Bidder that named a Guarantor in the Part 1 Application is required either

  • to provide a Pre-Auction Letter of Credit in an amount of $500,000 per tranche of the indicative offer at the maximum starting price and a Letter of Intent to Provide a Guaranty in an amount of $1.9M per tranche of the indicative offer at the maximum starting price; or:
  • to provide a Pre-Auction Letter of Credit in an amount of $2.4M per tranche of the indicative offer at the maximum starting price.

There is no mechanism or opportunity for the Qualified Bidder to request a creditworthiness assessment of another entity (including itself) after the Part 1 Application process is complete.



11/21/2022, in Pre-Auction Security.
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FAQ-21

In the event that we become a winning bidder in the Auction, is it required for the Authorized Representative or the Officer who names the Authorized Representative in the Part 1 Application to be the individual who executes the applicable Supplier Master Agreement (“SMA”)?


Neither the Authorized Representative, nor the Officer who names the Authorized Representative in the Part 1 Application, is required to be the individual who would execute the applicable SMA should the bidder win at the Auction.

In the event that you become a winning bidder in the Auction, the entity that executes the applicable SMA must be the same entity that has agreed to the terms of the SMA in the Part 1 and Part 2 Applications. However, the individual who signs the SMA can be any officer or representative who is authorized to execute contracts and bind the bidder.



11/21/2022, in Supplier Master Agreement .
FAQ-20

Is an Applicant to the BGS Auctions required to be a Load-Serving Entity (“LSE”) in the PJM Interconnection, L.L.C. (“PJM”) at the time of submitting the Part 1 Application?


No, the Applicant is not required to be a PJM LSE at the time of submitting the Part 1 Application. However, if the Applicant is not a PJM LSE at the time of submitting the Part 1 Application, the Applicant must certify in its Part 1 Application that there exist no impediments for the Applicant to become a PJM LSE by the start of the supply period (by using the LSE Certification Insert labelled #P1-4).



11/21/2022, in Application.
FAQ-19

We do not have an office in New Jersey and we do not have legal counsel in New Jersey. What are our options to comply with the requirements of Section 3 of the Part 1 Application?


Section 3 of the Part 1 Application does not compel the Applicant to have an office in New Jersey or to have legal counsel in New Jersey. Section 3 requires that the Applicant name a legal representative; for purposes of the Part 1 Application, a legal representative is a person or company that agrees to accept service of process on the Applicant’s behalf. The legal representative can be either legal counsel or a representative agent. The individual or company serving as the Applicant’s legal representative must provide an address in New Jersey. If a company agrees to accept service of process on your behalf, an individual from that company must sign the Legal Representative Insert (labelled #P1-3).  The name of the individual and contact information must be provided.



11/21/2022, in Application.
FAQ-18

We proposed modifications to the Pre-Auction and Post-Auction Letters of Credit in a prior BGS Auction.  Do we need to resubmit these modifications for consideration during the current process? 


If the modifications that you previously proposed appear in the list of Preliminary Acceptable Modifications to the Pre-Auction or Post-Auction Letters of Credit, posted to the Contract and Credit page of the ‘bidder info’ tab of the BGS Auction website on October 6, 2022, then there is no need to propose the same modifications again. 

If you are unsure or if some of your previously proposed modifications do not appear in the list of Preliminary Acceptable Modifications, then please resubmit your proposed modifications. For each proposed modification, the electric distribution companies (“EDCs”) will (i) revise the standard form; or (ii) approve the use of the modification on an optional basis; or (iii) reject the proposed modification. The BGS Auction Manager will respond to each potential bidder individually. Further, at the conclusion of the Comment Process, the BGS Auction Manager will post to the BGS Auction website the revised standard form for the Pre-Auction and Post-Auction Letters of Credit and will also post a single document listing all modifications to the standard form that are approved on an optional basis.

The deadline for submission of potential modifications is noon on October 25, 2022.  Please submit your proposed modifications to BGS-Auction@nera.com in accordance with the process described in the document "Comment Process on the Letters of Credit (Pre-Auction and Post-Auction) (October 6, 2022)", which is posted here: https://www.bgs-auction.com/bgs.bidinfo.cc.asp



10/17/2022, in Pre-Auction Security.
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FAQ-17

It appears that the content of the Inserts has not changed since the 2022 BGS Auctions. Can we resubmit Inserts from the 2022 BGS Auctions for purposes of meeting the 2023 BGS Auctions’ application requirements? 


No. Each year the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (“Board”) initiates a new proceeding for the upcoming BGS Auctions. Bidders thus must duly complete and submit the Inserts prepared for the specific BGS Auctions initiated by the proceeding; bidders may not submit Inserts and other documents related to prior BGS Auctions. 

The Illustrative Part 1 Form and Illustrative Part 2 Form posted to the Application Process page of the ‘bidder info’ tab of the BGS Auction website contain the list of application requirements, including the content of the Inserts, for the 2023 BGS Auctions. Final application materials and Inserts will be posted to the BGS Auction website as they become available



10/17/2022, in Application.
FAQ-16

When does the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (“BPU” or “Board”) render its decision on the results of the BGS Auctions?


The Board is expected to render its decision on the results of the BGS-CIEP and BGS-RSCP Auctions within two business days of the close of the BGS-CIEP or BGS-RSCP Auction, whichever occurs later. The Board, at its discretion, has the option of rendering a decision on the results of one Auction and of rendering a decision on the results of the other Auction at different points in time. For example, the Board may render a decision on the first Auction that closes while the second Auction is still in progress.



10/11/2022, in General.
FAQ-15

How long do the Auctions last? Can the Auctions continue for more than one business day?


The BGS-CIEP Auction is scheduled to start on Friday, February 3, 2023 and the BGS-RSCP Auction is scheduled to start on Monday, February 6, 2023.  Each Auction will end when the total excess supply in that Auction is equal to zero and no price for any EDC can tick down. For more details on the rules determining the end of an Auction, please see the Auction Rules posted to the “auction rules” page of the “bidder info” tab of the BGS Auction website.

Although the BGS-CIEP Auction and BGS-RSCP Auction have occasionally been completed in one business day, this is not always the case and is not one of the objectives for the Auctions. The Auction Manager cannot speculate when either Auction will close and it is entirely up to each bidder to make its own independent assessment and manage any risk associated with either Auction continuing for more than one business day.



10/11/2022, in General.
FAQ-14

When do the online Part 1 and Part 2 Application Forms open?


The online Part 1 Application Form will open no later than Tuesday, November 29, 2022. The online Part 2 Application Form will open on Monday, December 19, 2022.



10/5/2022, in Application.
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FAQ-13

Does this website have information on community solar procurements in New Jersey?


While the BGS Auction website contains some general information of interest to all stakeholders, this website is mainly established for suppliers that bid to provide supply to BGS customers. “BGS” refers to Basic Generation Service, which is the service that each Electric Distribution Company (i.e., Public Service Electric and Gas Company (“PSE&G”), Jersey Central Power & Light Company (“JCP&L”), Atlantic City Electric Company (“ACE”), and Rockland Electric Company (“RECO”)) provides to those customers who do not switch to a Third Party Supplier.

Opportunities for community solar projects exist under New Jersey’s Clean Energy Program. More information regarding this program can be found on its website: https://njcleanenergy.com/renewable-energy/programs/community-solar



10/5/2022, in General.
FAQ-12

Are redlines available between the final 2022 Supplier Master Agreements (“SMAs”) and the provisional 2023 SMAs?


The BGS Auction Manager has made available redlines between the Final 2022 BGS-CIEP and BGS-RSCP SMAs and the SMAs filed as part of the EDCs’ Proposal for the provision of Basic Generation Service for the period beginning June 1, 2023. The redlines are available on the Contract and Credit page of the “bidder info” tab of the BGS Auction website.



8/26/2022, in Supplier Master Agreement .
FAQ-11

Are utility-scale battery storage systems procured through the BGS Auctions?


Utility-scale battery storage systems are not procured through the BGS Auctions. 

While the BGS Auction website contains some general information of interest to all stakeholders, this website is mainly established for suppliers that bid to provide supply to BGS customers.  “BGS” refers to Basic Generation Service, which is the service that each Electric Distribution Company (i.e., Public Service Electric and Gas Company (“PSE&G”), Jersey Central Power & Light Company (“JCP&L”), Atlantic City Electric Company (“ACE”), and Rockland Electric Company (“RECO”)) provides to those customers who do not switch to a third party supplier.



8/11/2022, in General.
FAQ-10

It appears some of the Peak Load Share values for certain months in the “JCPL 0-750kW Size Distribution Switching Statistics July 2022 Update” file fluctuate more than would be expected within a particular Energy Year.  Can you please confirm that the values in this file are correct?


Thank you for bringing this to our attention. The “JCPL 0-750kW Size Distribution Switching Statistics July 2022 Update” file has been updated and is available on the monthly data page of the BGS Auction site.



8/11/2022, in Data.
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FAQ-9

Appendix B of the BGS-RSCP Supplier Master Agreement (“BGS-RSCP SMA”) provides a description of the mark-to-market (“MtM”) exposure amount calculation and mentions the use of broker quotes. Can you provide further details as to how broker quotes are used to calculate the forward market prices for purposes of the MtM methodology?


Forward market prices are calculated using data from brokers, which is defined in the BGS-RSCP SMA to include both independent brokers and exchanges active in the energy markets. Data sources have changed periodically based on data availability. The sources currently used are Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (“ICE”), NYMEX, TFS Energy LLC (“TFS”), and Amerex Brokers LLC (“Amerex”).

The forward market prices are calculated by averaging the available broker quotes and the broker quotes may be for individual months, two-month blocks, or quarterly blocks. The “MtM Exposure Amount Calculation Information” section of Appendix B describes how the EDCs unpack multi-month blocks to derive forward market prices for individual months in instances where a block and a component of the block are available. Using multiple sources and employing a method to unpack two-month blocks and quarterly blocks allows the EDCs to maximize the number of quotes used to calculate the forward market prices.

When quotes are available from more than one data source, the forward market prices are calculated by averaging the available broker quotes. When quotes are only available from a single broker or data source, and that source is ICE, then the forward market prices are calculated as the average of the ICE quotes over the preceding five (5) days. Forward market prices for the months, two-month blocks, or quarterly blocks where broker quotes are unavailable from any broker will be equal to the last available broker quote or in case they have not been quoted since the BGS-RSCP Auction closed, they will be equal to the marks set at the close of the BGS-RSCP Auction.

Please see Appendix B of the BGS-RSCP SMA for additional details surrounding the MtM calculation.



8/11/2022, in Credit, Supplier Master Agreement .
FAQ-8

There are no questions posted to the FAQ archives on the BGS Auction website. Where can I find FAQs from previous auctions?


The documents and FAQs of the BGS Auction website are refreshed every year to include only content relevant for the upcoming BGS Auctions. The FAQ Archive page is for FAQs posted since the refresh of the BGS Auction website but that are no longer relevant at the present time. FAQs from prior BGS Auctions are no longer available.



8/11/2022, in General.
FAQ-7

Is the hourly load data reported in Eastern Standard Time or Eastern Prevailing Time?


The data in the BGS Data Room is reported in Eastern Prevailing Time (“EPT”).



8/11/2022, in Data.
FAQ-6

Does the BGS-CIEP closing price determine the payment to BGS-CIEP Suppliers as well as the rates for BGS-CIEP customers?


A BGS-CIEP Supplier provides full-requirements service for the percentage of the EDC’s BGS-CIEP Load corresponding to the number of tranches won. A BGS-CIEP Supplier receives the price determined at the Auction applied to the supplier’s share of the BGS-CIEP capacity obligation. A BGS-CIEP Supplier also receives the following payments: (i) a fixed ancillary service payment rate applied to the supplier’s share of BGS-CIEP Load (energy); (ii) the “Hourly Real-Time Spot Price”, which refers to the PJM load-weighted average Residual Metered Load aggregate Real-Time Locational Marginal Price for the zone, applied to the supplier’s share of BGS-CIEP Load (energy); and (iii) the CIEP Standby Fee.

With respect to the rates paid by BGS-CIEP customers, the transmission rate is based on either a demand charge or transmission obligation charge, depending on the EDC. The energy rate is the Hourly Real-Time Spot Price, which will be adjusted each hour by the relevant EDC loss expansion factor. The ancillary service rate will be a pre-determined value based on the ancillary service payment rate to suppliers adjusted for losses. The price for an EDC is the final Auction price for that EDC and will be assessed as a specific capacity obligation charge, demand charge, or energy charge.



8/11/2022, in Rates.
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FAQ-5

Are BGS suppliers paired with individual customers or with customers within an EDC’s subzone?


Each tranche represents a set percentage of BGS (BGS-RSCP or BGS-CIEP) Load for the EDC. The tranches are neither specific to a set of customers or to a subzone. BGS suppliers are not paired with individual customers.



8/11/2022, in General.

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