PNM Resources : Pedro Azagra Blazquez Supplemental Testimony

DOCKET NO. 51547

JOINT REPORT AND APPLICATION OF TEXAS-NEW MEXICO POWER COMPANY, NM GREEN HOLDINGS, INC., AND AVANGRID, INC. FOR REGULATORY APPROVALS UNDER PURA §§ 14.101, 39.262, AND 39.915

§

• PUBLIC UTILITY COMMISSION

§	OF TEXAS
§
§

SUPPLEMENTAL TESTIMONY IN SUPPORT OF STIPULATION

of

PEDRO AZAGRA BLAZQUEZ

on behalf of Applicants

AVANGRID, INC. AND NM GREEN HOLDINGS, INC.

March 30, 2021

Pedro Azagra Blazquez Supplemental Testimony in Support of Stipulation

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Table of Contents

I.	INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................	3
II.	REGULATORY COMMITMENTS...................................................................	4
III.	STATUTORY AND OTHER FACTORS ........................................................	25
IV.	CONCLUSION ...................................................................................................	29
AFFIDAVIT ....................................................................................................................	31

EXHIBITS

Exhibit PAB-S-1: Stipulation Regulatory Commitments

Pedro Azagra Blazquez Supplemental Testimony in Support of Stipulation

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	SUPPLEMENTAL TESTIMONY IN SUPPORT OF STIPULATION
		OF
	PEDRO AZAGRA BLAZQUEZ
1	I.	INTRODUCTION

• Q. Please state your name, title, and business address and why you are testifying.

• A. My name is Pedro Azagra Blazquez. I am the Chief Development Officer and a

• Member of the Executive Committee of Iberdrola, S.A. ("Iberdrola"). I am also a

• member of the Board of Directors for Avangrid, Inc. ("Avangrid"). My business

• address is Tomás Redondo 1, Madrid, Spain, 28033. I am testifying to support (1)
  7 the Joint Report and Application of Texas-New Mexico Power Company, NM

• Green Holdings, Inc., and Avangrid, Inc. for Regulatory Approvals under PURA

• §§ 14.101, 39.262, and 39.915 (the "Application"), and (2) the unanimous
  10 stipulation and revised Regulatory Commitments filed by all parties to this

1. proceeding. The stipulation and revised Regulatory Commitments are a complete
2. resolution of all issues in this proceeding.
3. Q. Are you the same Pedro Azagra who filed direct and rebuttal testimony in this
4. proceeding on behalf of the Joint Applicants?
5. A. Yes.
6. Q. Please summarize your supplemental testimony in support of the unanimous
7. stipulation in this proceeding.
8. A. My supplemental testimony discusses the regulatory commitments that all parties
9. have agreed to in order to settle this proceeding. All parties agree that the
10. settlement is in the public interest and satisfies the statutory standards for
11. Commission approval of the Proposed Transaction.

Pedro Azagra Blazquez Supplement Testimony in Support of Stipulation

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• Q. Are you sponsoring any exhibits?

• A. Yes, I sponsor Exhibit PAB-S-1 (the Stipulation Regulatory Commitments).

3	II. REGULATORY COMMITMENTS

• Q. Have the Joint Applicants1 and the parties to this proceeding reached a

• comprehensive agreement regarding all the Regulatory Commitments that

• should apply to the Proposed Transaction?

7 A. Yes. Following a robust and intensive examination and discourse about the

• Proposed Transaction, the parties have reached a unanimous stipulation. Prior to

• initiation of settlement discussions in this proceeding, Joint Applicants received

1. and responded to multiple sets of requests for information. All intervenors and
2. Commission Staff had the benefit of that discovery and the opportunity to evaluate
3. the Application and develop their respective positions. They also had an
4. opportunity to state their positions and concerns in their direct testimony, and to
5. review responses to that testimony in Joint Applicants' rebuttal testimony. The
6. settlement negotiations were conducted with the benefit of that extensive and
7. comprehensive exchange of information.

17	My Exhibit PAB-S-1 sets forth each of the stipulation regulatory

1. commitments. The Regulatory Commitments generally encompass the types of
2. protections provided in prior Commission-approved sale, transfer, or merger
3. proceedings involving transmission and distribution utilities.

1 On November 23, 2020, Texas-New Mexico Power Company ("TNMP"), NM Green Holdings, Inc. ("Green Holdings"), and Avangrid (collectively Joint Applicants) filed a report and application seeking approval of a change of ownership or control of TNMP.

Pedro Azagra Blazquez Supplement Testimony in Support of Stipulation

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• Q. How do the stipulation Regulatory Commitments compare to the original

• commitments filed by the Joint Applicants?

• A. To achieve the Stipulation, Joint Applicants have agreed to additional or modified

• Regulatory Commitments that: enhance the financial ring-fencing measures the

• Joint Applicants originally proposed; increase the rate credit to customers; provide

• robust measures to preclude any competitive advantage that a competitive affiliate

• of TNMP might gain post-transaction underscored by a commitment by Avangrid
  8 and Iberdrola to exit the ERCOT competitive retail market; and enhance the
  9 governance provisions designed to protect the best interests of TNMP and its

1. customers. These additions and modifications demonstrate the extensive nature of
2. the negotiations among the parties and reflect the degree to which the Joint
3. Applicants have agreed to incorporate commitments to address the parties'
4. concerns.
5. Q. How is your testimony organized?
6. A. I will discuss each of the seven topical areas of the Regulatory Commitments and
7. describe generally the enhancements or additions we have made in the stipulation
8. commitments. My testimony typically describes the commitments in a general or
9. summary manner, while my Exhibit PAB-S-1 provides the detailed language of
10. each commitment.

Pedro Azagra Blazquez Supplement Testimony in Support of Stipulation

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