California Energy Hub^®

California Energy Hub® offers several services for Southern California's natural gas market. These include traditional hub services such as natural gas parking and loaning, natural gas storage, and gas sales from CPUC-authorized projects.

Park and Loan

Effective July 2008, SoCalGas established new tariff G-PAL. This tariff offers, when available, interruptible gas parking and loaning services to any qualified creditworthy party. Gas parking is the temporary storage of gas on the SoCalGas system and gas loaning is the temporary lending of gas from the SoCalGas system. Rates for this service are negotiated on an individual transaction basis based on current market conditions. The negotiated rate includes the transmission of gas between the citygate and the storage fields. Prerequisites for this service are an executed Master Services Contract (MSC) and an MSC Schedule O.

As required by D.07-12-019, SoCalGas will post on a weekly basis at its EBB: net hub position, net volumes parked and loaned, withdrawal schedules for all hub volumes parked and repayment schedules for all hub volumes loaned.

• G-PAL Tariff (Adobe PDF)
• Operations Park and Loan Services Agreement
• Operational Hub Positions (Adobe PDF)

Natural Gas Storage

SoCalGas is the nation’s largest natural gas distribution utility, providing reliable, safe and efficient natural gas service to a population of more than 13 million. Underground storage of natural gas plays a vital role in balancing the region’s energy supply and demand. SoCalGas owns and operates 4 underground storage facilities located at Aliso Canyon, Honor Rancho, Goleta and Playa Del Rey. These facilities play a vital role in balancing the region’s energy supply and demand.

Of our total 131.1 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of storage capacity, 79 Bcf is allocated to our Core residential, small industrial and commercial customers. About 5 Bcf of space is used for system balancing. The remaining capacity is available to other customers.

Benefits of underground storage include imbalance protection, curtailment protection and price arbitrage. Storage can be used to avoid imbalance penalties from monthly or daily balancing violations. To avoid the suspension of gas supplies from a curtailment event, storage will move customers with firm withdrawal service back to the number 7 level of the curtailment queue. Storage can be used to take advantage of the swings in gas prices to generate profits or reduce costs. Storage can also help customers maintain non-core rate eligibility, eliminate the hassle that is associated with other back up fuel systems, and help keep plants running and delivery schedules on track.

• 2010 Storage Open Season – - Currently offering capacity for April 2010
• Storage Transactions -- As required by D.07-12-019, SoCalGas will post all storage transactions on its EBB within one business day of execution.
• Interruptible Storage Injection and Withdrawal Auction -- Beginning on April 1, 2009, customers may bid for interruptible storage injection and withdrawal rights on a daily basis. By obtaining interruptible injection rights, a storage customer may increase the likelihood of being allocated a portion of unused storage injection capacity when an Operational Flow Order has been declared.

Gas Sales from CPUC-Authorized Projects

California Energy Hub conducts gas sales from the decommissioned Montebello gas storage field pursuant to CPUC Decision No. 01-06-081 dated June 28, 2001. California Energy Hub also conducts gas sales from other cushion gas projects. When required, SoCalGas reworks wells in existing storage fields creating additional storage inventory and releasing cushion gas for sale.

SoCalGas has also received CPUC authorization to engage in exploration and production activities for natural gas at its storage properties. Proceeds from the sale of natural gas into the California marketplace will be shared with ratepayers and will contribute to further exploration activities at the properties.

For Further Information on California Energy Hub Services