Avista Requests Lower Natural Gas Prices for Washington and Idaho Customers
February 13 2012 - 4:05PM
Marketwired
Avista today filed Purchased Gas Cost Adjustment (PGA) requests
with the utility commissions in Washington and Idaho to reduce
overall natural gas prices by 6.4 percent and 6.0 percent
respectively, to be effective March 1.
If the request is approved by the Washington Utilities and
Transportation Commission (WUTC), a residential customer in
Washington using an average of 67 therms per month would see a
decrease of $3.90, or 6.0 percent, for a revised monthly bill of
$60.73. Washington commercial customers could expect decreases of
7.6 percent for large general service schedule 111, 8.2 percent for
extra large general service schedule 121 and 9.5 percent for
interruptible sales service schedule 131.
If the request is approved by the Idaho Public Utilities
Commission (IPUC), an Idaho customer using an average of 62 therms
per month would see a $3.46, or 5.7 percent, decrease for a revised
monthly bill of $57.50. Idaho commercial customers could expect
decreases of 7.3 percent for large general service schedule 111 and
9.7 percent for interruptible sales service schedule 131. Avista
has approximately 149,000 natural gas customers in Washington and
76,000 in Idaho.
"We know many of our customers are concerned about expenses in
this economy, and we want to pass these price decreases on to them
as quickly as we can," said Dennis Vermillion, president of Avista
Utilities. "The increase in natural gas supply, along with
continuing soft demand, is creating the current environment of
falling natural gas prices."
PGA filings are usually made annually in the fall to pass
through changes in the cost of natural gas Avista acquires to serve
customers. The direct cost of natural gas makes up about 65 percent
of an Avista customer's bill, and this cost can fluctuate up and
down based on market prices. Given the decline in wholesale natural
gas prices, Avista is proposing to decrease the natural gas rates
our customers pay to better reflect current market prices for
natural gas. The remaining 35 percent of a customer's bill covers
the cost of delivering the natural gas to customers -- the
equipment and people needed to provide safe and reliable delivery
of service. These costs are changed with state approval of a
general rate case request.
Avista does not mark up the cost of natural gas that is
purchased to meet customer needs. These changes in natural gas
costs and the PGA rate adjustments do not increase or decrease
Avista's earnings.
If approved by the WUTC, overall revenues from Washington
customers would decrease by $9.9 million, and if approved by the
IPUC, overall revenues from Idaho customers would decrease by $4.1
million.
Avista's rate applications are proposals, subject to public
review and a decision by the WUTC and the IPUC. Copies of the
applications are available for public review at the offices of the
WUTC and the IPUC, as well as at Avista, and they are available on
the WUTC's website at utc.wa.gov and the IPUC's website at
puc.idaho.gov. The commissions will begin a review of Avista's
applications and will seek public input on the company's
request.
About Avista Utilities Avista Utilities is
involved in the production, transmission and distribution of
energy. We provide energy services and electricity to 358,000
customers and natural gas to 317,000 customers in a service
territory that covers 30,000 square miles in eastern Washington,
northern Idaho and parts of southern and eastern Oregon, with a
population of 1.5 million. Avista Utilities is an operating
division of Avista Corp. (NYSE: AVA). For more information, please
visit www.avistautilities.com.
The Avista logo is a trademark of Avista Corporation.
This news release contains forward-looking statements regarding
the company's current expectations. Forward-looking statements are
all statements other than historical facts. Such statements speak
only as of the date of the news release and are subject to a
variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the
company's control, which could cause actual results to differ
materially from the expectations. These risks and uncertainties
include, in addition to those discussed herein, all of the factors
discussed in the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year
ended Dec. 31, 2010, and the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the
quarter ended Sept. 30, 2011.
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Contact: Jessie Wuerst 509-495-8578 Email Contact Avista
24/7 Media Line 509-495-4174
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