Tiki torches under fire for wasting natural gas

Send the tiki torch up in flames?

Absolutely, says Eric Witkoski.

Witkoski, state consumer advocate, says tiki torches waste gas that could be used for a better purpose, such as generating electricity. The torches are comprised of metal poles that are stuck in the ground and often burn natural gas.

Witkoski commented after the Public Utilities Commission ended the first part of a rate-design case that was discussed Wednesday related to natural gas conservation.

Nevada's gas regulations in the past have created financial incentives for local gas distribution companies like Southwest Gas Corp. to encourage increased use of gas, Witkoski said.

The more gas the utility sells, the more profit it earns for stockholders, he explained.

As a result, Southwest Gas Corp. has long promoted gas-fired tiki torches as a backyard amenity for parties and gatherings. But Witkoski thinks Nevadans should use the country's limited natural gas supplies for more practical purposes, such as generating electricity.

"Should we really have people trying to sell tiki torches and trying to increase (utility) revenue with a finite resource?" Witkoski asked.

No, he argued. The state needs to conserve natural gas, he said, partly because it is a depleting fossil fuel that is used to generate electricity here.

The consumer advocate supports a regulatory move to neutralize regulations that encourage utilities to promote gas sales as a way of increasing profits. He argues for "decoupling" Southwest Gas profits from the quantity of gas sold.

Decoupling mechanisms allow a gas utility to recover fixed costs, such as gas pipelines, on a per customer basis, according to a Southwest Gas spokeswoman. Under current rules, some of those fixed costs are built into the rate segment for the commodity or gas itself.

The state Legislature in 2007 enacted a law requiring the utilities commission to take steps to decouple gas rates.

In the first phase of the case, the commission voted to allow Westpac, a gas utility in Reno, to earn an additional 5 percent return on equity for energy conservation programs. The so-called "equity adder" provision doesn't apply to Southwest Gas, which would be governed by the outcome of a second phase of the case dealing with decoupling.

Contact reporter John G. Edwards at jedwards@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0420.