Energy sold to Entergy Mississippi from a Louisiana fuel contract was miniscule in size and gave its system’s capacity needed flexibility, according to a response filed by the utility before the state Public Service Commission.

The utility sought to defend itself in light of statements made by its legal counsel before the Public Utilities Staff and counsel for the state Public Service Commission and released by Attorney General Jim Hood that the company was mistaken when it said the activities in Louisiana did not affect Mississippi ratepayers.

Entergy’s response says some energy using gas from a long-term gas contract in Evangeline Parish — at the heart of a lawsuit that resulted in a $72 million refund to customers in Louisiana — was sold through its system exchange to other operating companies, including Entergy Mississippi.

However, the company says, the amount was relatively small — about 1 percent of the total Entergy Mississippi load in megawatt hours between 2005 and 2008 — and provided flexible capacity to the Entergy System.

“This is a complex process and we want to make sure we provide the MPSC with the correct information,” Entergy Mississippi manager for regulatory affairs Dorwin Davis said. “However, our preliminary calculations show that the amount of energy from this contract that was used by Entergy Mississippi was relatively small.”

Davis also said the company filings show Hood “mischaracterized our good faith efforts to provide accurate information to the MPSC.”

The news coincides with announcements that residential bills will go down another 14 percent through March.

The first quarter fuel adjustment approved by the PSC is the third reduction since a nationwide spike in natural gas prices pushed bills up 28 percent during July and August. Typical residential usage, pegged at 1,000 kilowatt hours, will translate into a bill totaling about $89. Due to the spike in natural gas, that same amount of electricity would have cost about $133 last summer, a company release said.

Natural gas traded on commodity markets at $8.80 per million British thermal units Friday. At the peak of mid-summmer utility bill spikes, it traded at about $14.

A pending lawsuit in Hinds County filed by Hood charges Entergy with making false statements to the PSC concerning its rate calculations. Hood alleges the company has padded its invoices since 1974 and sold its customers in Mississippi the highest-priced power available in its four-state system.

Entergy Mississippi files possible fuel adjustments quarterly with the Public Utilities Staff and the PSC to reflect the market effect of fuel on its power-generating facilities. Both the staff and commission have 45 days before the start of the affected quarter to review the filing and make changes before it goes into effect. By law, the utility makes no profit on fuel charges.

In total, Entergy owns and operates power plants with about 30,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity, and it is the second-largest nuclear generator in the United States. Entergy sells electricity to 2.6 million utility customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.

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Contact Danny Barrett Jr. at dbarrett@vicksburgpost.com