Clean Energy Fuels Corp. v. California Public Utilities Commission

The California Court of Appeal affirmed the California Public Utilities Commission’s (CPUC’s) approval of Southern California Gas Company’s (SoCalGas) application for a “Compression Services Tariff” under which SoCalGas would construct and operate equipment on nonresidential customers’ property to compress, store, and dispense natural gas above standard line pressure for customer end-use applications, including natural gas vehicle refueling, combined heat and power facilities, and peaking power plants. The court said that CPUC had incorporated adequate restrictions in its approval to prevent SoCalGas from unfairly competing with nonutility enterprises. The court also ruled that substantial evidence supported CPUC’s conclusion that the tariff would increase natural gas use in the Los Angeles area and thereby reduce air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.