20231213AVU to Staff 7-9_13_19.pdf

AVISTA CORPORATION RESPONSE TO REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

JURISDICTION: IDAHO DATE PREPARED: 12/13/2023 CASE NO: AVU-E-23-16 WITNESS: N/A REQUESTER: IPUC RESPONDER: Rendall Farley TYPE: Production Request DEPARTMENT: Electric Transportation
REQUEST NO.: Staff-007 TELEPHONE: [phone] REQUEST:
Please clarify how, if at all, the economic benefits described in the Application at 2 will reduce or otherwise benefit Idaho customers' electric rates. Please provide a timeline showing the expected benefit as the penetration of DCFC stations grows.
RESPONSE: The net benefits from light-duty EVs, from a customer rate-impact perspective, are shown in Figure No. 1 of the Application. The billed revenue would exceed the utilities cost to generate and deliver the electricity. The Company does not have a timeline of expected benefits as the
penetration of DCFC stations grows, however a number of scenarios may be considered based on
the current number of vehicles in Idaho and given assumptions for vehicle stock growth and the percentage of EVs to the total vehicle stock.1 An adequate network of DCFC is critical to enable EV adoption, and therefore in order to achieve the benefits that EVs provide, addressing market barriers to greater investment in DCFC in Idaho is important and the intended result of the
Company’s proposal.
1 “Alternative Fuels Task Force Report”. pp. 28-35. Idaho Strategic Energy Alliance (2023). Accessible at:
https://oemr.idaho.gov/wp-content/uploads/ISEA-Alternative-Fuels-Task-Force-Report_FINAL.pdf
RECEIVED
2023 DECEMBER 13, 2023 10:50AM
IDAHO PUBLIC
UTILITIES COMMISSION
AVISTA CORPORATION RESPONSE TO REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

JURISDICTION: IDAHO DATE PREPARED: 12/13/2023 CASE NO: AVU-E-23-16 WITNESS: N/A REQUESTER: IPUC RESPONDER: Rendall Farley TYPE: Production Request DEPARTMENT: Electric Transportation
REQUEST NO.: Staff-008 TELEPHONE: [phone] REQUEST:
Please clarify how, if at all, the Company's proposal claims the grid benefit of net positive revenue if the proposal is designed to be revenue neutral. RESPONSE:

Net positive revenue results from each light-duty EV as indicated in Figure No. 1 of the Company’s application, as the billed revenue exceeds the combined utility costs to generate and deliver the electricity. Adoption of EVs is dependent on an adequate DCFC network that provides customer confidence in the ability to take longer distance trips with an EV. To the degree that the
proposed DCFC rate facilitates greater investment and operation of DCFC in Idaho, EV adoption
will increase and provide commensurate net positive revenue.
AVISTA CORPORATION RESPONSE TO REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

JURISDICTION: IDAHO DATE PREPARED: 12/13/2023 CASE NO: AVU-E-23-16 WITNESS: N/A REQUESTER: IPUC RESPONDER: Rendall Farley TYPE: Production Request DEPARTMENT: Electric Transportation
REQUEST NO.: Staff-009 TELEPHONE: [phone] REQUEST:
The Company's Application describes that 95% of electric vehicle ("EV") charging occurs at home or at work. Please explain how the Company's proposal will accelerate the adoption of EVs in Idaho when the majority of charging for local EV owners occurs at home.
RESPONSE: Mass market adoption of EVs requires confidence in the ability to take convenient, longer trips enabled by a robust DCFC network.1 Adequate DCFC in terms of type, quantity and location are critically important to enable longer trips with EVs. The Company’s proposed DCFC rate schedule
helps remove the market barrier associated with high demand charges that result in net operating
losses for DCFC owner/operations, and thus encourages both private investment and public grant funding for the ownership and operation of public DCFC in Idaho.

1 “The 2030 National Charging Network: Estimating U.S. Light-Duty Demand for Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure.” National Renewable Energy Laboratory (2023). Accessible at:
https://driveelectric.gov/files/2030-charging-network.pdf
AVISTA CORPORATION RESPONSE TO REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

JURISDICTION: IDAHO DATE PREPARED: 12/13/2023 CASE NO: AVU-E-23-16 WITNESS: N/A REQUESTER: IPUC RESPONDER: Rendall Farley TYPE: Production Request DEPARTMENT: Electric Transportation
REQUEST NO.: Staff-013 TELEPHONE: [phone] REQUEST:
Please describe and quantify the costs incurred by the Company for the installation of a DCFC station. a. Please breakdown these costs by those covered under existing tariffs and costs not covered under existing tariffs.
RESPONSE: Utility costs for a typical DCFC site involves: 1. A line extension of medium-voltage (13.5 kV).
2. 3-phase utility power as primary supply to a dedicated service transformer.
3. A secondary supply from the transformer at 480V. 4. 3-phase power to a utility meter and the customer’s 480V service. 5. 3-phase supply panel.
An average cost of $25,041 accounts for the labor and material costs for the utility line extension, in addition to $21,502 for a typical 500 kVA transformer. The customer is responsible for these costs after subtracting a line extension allowance as authorized by tariff Schedule 51, which averages $25,740 and is the net average cost incurred by the Company to serve a new construction
DCFC site.
AVISTA CORPORATION RESPONSE TO REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

JURISDICTION: IDAHO DATE PREPARED: 12/13/2023 CASE NO: AVU-E-23-16 WITNESS: N/A REQUESTER: IPUC RESPONDER: Rendall Farley TYPE: Production Request DEPARTMENT: Electric Transportation
REQUEST NO.: Staff-019 TELEPHONE: [phone] REQUEST:
Please provide all supporting documentation and calculations for the numbers used in Table No. 1 of the Application, including the average number of charging sessions per month, energy consumption, user fee rate, and max electricity power demand. Please provide the workpapers in excel format with the formulas enabled.
RESPONSE: Please see Staff_PR_019 Attachment A, provided as a workpaper in Excel format with formulas enabled. Also, see Staff_PR_012 Attachment A.