Bonneville Power sets wholesale power rates

The Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) has adopted new rates for fiscal years 2018 and 2019. The agency adopted a 5.4 percent average wholesale power rate increase and an average transmission rate decrease of .7 percent that will take effect October 1. BPA provides wholesale electricity to Idaho Falls, Fall River Electric, and Lower Valley Energy. The new rates will affect local utilities differently depending on the amount of power and type of services they purchase from BPA. The overall rate increase is primarily due to a lower-than-expected demand for power, a declining forecast of surplus power sales revenues due to lower market prices, and escalating costs of programs driven by legal requirements. BPA is working with regional partners to identify new revenue streams and continued cost-containment strategies that may help mitigate these rising cost pressures. Transmission rates will decrease in the next rate period by an average of 0.7 percent. This is due to cost-management efforts and savings from debt-management actions. The new rates also include investments to modernize core utility operating systems that will enable BPA to maximize the efficiency of operations.