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Article: Natural gas costs threatening to swamp PNM.(CURRENT)
- Article from:
- Natural Gas Week
- Article date:
- April 28, 2008
- Author:
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Public Service Co. of New Mexico (PNM), that state's largest utility, squeaked through an emergency rate increase hearing last week--but the regulators' approval of about $9 million more is only a stopgap, industry experts say. And the utility's proposed fuel clause remains undecided until May 15, when the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission (NMPRC) says it will rule on the $72 million proposal.
Natural gas-fueled units were a "quick fix" for Public Service New Mexico, the gas and electric utility based in Albuquerque. Its power demand was growing, but generation options were slim. No one wants to build coal, and nuclear power would take far too long to ...