20180126Avista to Staff_DR_014.docx

AVISTA CORP.
RESPONSE TO REQUEST FOR INFORMATIONJURISDICTION:WASHINGTONDATE PREPARED:11/20/2017CASE NO.:U-170970WITNESS:Patrick D. EhrbarREQUESTER:UTC StaffRESPONDER:Ed SchlectTYPE:Data RequestDEPT:Corporate StrategyREQUEST NO.:Staff – 014(AVA)TELEPHONE:[phone]EMAIL:[e-mail]:
Please explain how Avista will be able to distinguish between benefits (or efficiencies) that are due to the merger, versus those that would have been achieved from efforts that would have been pursued if Avista remained a standalone company?RESPONSE:
Some benefits will be observable as a direct result of the merger, including the cost savings identified by Avista witness Mr. Thies. Avista and Hydro One have just started to engage in high-level discussions to begin to identify additional future opportunities for savings related to benefits of economies of scale or efficiencies from shared processes. At this point in time Avista has not prepared a plan to track the benefits or efficiencies related to these additional opportunities, nor have we quantified or specifically identified where these savings may come from. When the merger is complete, the Company will determine a plan to track the savings associated with the merger and as stated in testimony of Avista witness Mr. Thies, benefits will be tracked and reported on an annual basis.