In the wake of Judge Dwyer's affirmation of Frederick County, Maryland's, Board of Zoning Appeals denial of a special exception for PATH's gigantic substation last month, PATH had 30 days to file further appeals. The deadline quietly passed at the end of last week, with no further whiny filings from PATH. They've finally shut up about it, at long last! Break out the ale!
Is this another indication that PATH is precariously perched on the precipice of abandonment? C'mon, let's get on with it! No time like the present.
March 28 addendum: We now have "official" quotes from PATH stating that it will not file further appeals.
Although PATH's talking head claims that PATH's "rationale" (when has PATH ever made a rational decision?) for the decision is "confidential," it's more than obvious. Contentious federal abandonment hearings, where PATH will have to prove the prudence of its expenditures, are starting to become more of a certain reality to the companies.
One of the incentives that the PATH Project was granted by FERC way back in 2008 was a guarantee for recovery of 100% of prudently incurred investment in the event the project is abandoned. PATH hopes to recover their approximately $140M investment in the project from ratepayers in 13 states over an as yet undetermined number of years (for their TrAILCo project, they suggested 49).
When PJM put the PATH Project "in abeyance" last February 28, continued costly appeals on the substation decision were no longer prudent.
"As we've discussed on numerous occasions, the proposed PATH Project, including the proposed Kemptown Substation, remains in suspension at the direction of PJM. Potomac Edison will consider its options for constructing the Kemptown Substation if the PATH Project should be re-activated by PJM," Meyers wrote.
If continued legal appeals are no longer prudent, PATH's first appeal to Circuit Court was not prudent either, since it occurred after the "suspension."
PATH has been spending your money willy-nilly on whatever they thought would foster the influence they would need to ram this project through state approvals. They never thought they would be challenged on their expenditures, or that their project could fail. Now they're left "holding the bucket" and this particular bucket is not full of water, electricity or money. It's chock full of something rather pungent...
Is this another indication that PATH is precariously perched on the precipice of abandonment? C'mon, let's get on with it! No time like the present.
March 28 addendum: We now have "official" quotes from PATH stating that it will not file further appeals.
Although PATH's talking head claims that PATH's "rationale" (when has PATH ever made a rational decision?) for the decision is "confidential," it's more than obvious. Contentious federal abandonment hearings, where PATH will have to prove the prudence of its expenditures, are starting to become more of a certain reality to the companies.
One of the incentives that the PATH Project was granted by FERC way back in 2008 was a guarantee for recovery of 100% of prudently incurred investment in the event the project is abandoned. PATH hopes to recover their approximately $140M investment in the project from ratepayers in 13 states over an as yet undetermined number of years (for their TrAILCo project, they suggested 49).
When PJM put the PATH Project "in abeyance" last February 28, continued costly appeals on the substation decision were no longer prudent.
"As we've discussed on numerous occasions, the proposed PATH Project, including the proposed Kemptown Substation, remains in suspension at the direction of PJM. Potomac Edison will consider its options for constructing the Kemptown Substation if the PATH Project should be re-activated by PJM," Meyers wrote.
If continued legal appeals are no longer prudent, PATH's first appeal to Circuit Court was not prudent either, since it occurred after the "suspension."
PATH has been spending your money willy-nilly on whatever they thought would foster the influence they would need to ram this project through state approvals. They never thought they would be challenged on their expenditures, or that their project could fail. Now they're left "holding the bucket" and this particular bucket is not full of water, electricity or money. It's chock full of something rather pungent...
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