Lewis County PUDRates
LEWIS PUD INCREASES RATE EFFECTIVE JANUARY 1, 2010
On December 21, 2009, the Board of Commissioners of Public Utility District No. 1 of Lewis County approved an overall average retail rate increase of 9.4% for all power use beginning January 1, 2010. The cause for the increase is a 7.5% wholesale power cost increase from the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) that was effective on October 1, 2009, and the cost of compliance with Initiative 937.
Lewis County PUD purchases approximately 98% of its power from the BPA which represents about 70% of Lewis PUD's costs; with the economic downturn, the District has more than enough supply from BPA to serve its load. Initiative 937 (approved by the voters, November 2006) requires Lewis County PUD to acquire cost effective conservation and qualifying renewable energy to serve a portion of the PUD’s energy needs (hydroelectric is not considered a qualifying renewable resource under I-937). Because I-937 requires Lewis County PUD to acquire qualifying renewable power regardless of whether the District needs additional power or not, the District has purchased wind power at about 8 to 9 cents per kwh and backed off low cost BPA hydro power at about 3 cents per kwh, while also adding additional programs and measures to expand its conservation program. The BPA rate increase and the I-937 compliance costs have added approximately $4 million to the PUD's annual costs for 2010.
Lewis PUD has not increased rates since 2004, and actually reduced rates 4% in October, 2006. Even with this rate increase, Lewis PUD’s retail rates remain among the lowest in western Washington and the Northwest. Lewis’ residential rates will remain approximately 20% lower than Centralia City Light and ½ of Puget Sound Energy rates in Thurston County. Attached are utility comparisons of residential and commercial/industrial rates for western Washington utilities.
Links to rate comparisons:
Residential
Commercial/Industrial