20090316News Release.pdf

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NEWS RELEASE ~~-c'"Z
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact: Echo Chadwick
Corporate Communication
388-6654 or echadwick~idahopower.com
Idaho Power Makes Four Energy Effciency-Related Filngs with the IPUC
2008 Demand-Side Management Annual Report cites great progress in energy effciency savings
Rate actions complement expanded energy effciency activities
BOISE, ID, Friday, March 13,2009-- Today Idaho Power recognizes the energy efficiency
achievements of the company and its customers through the fiing of its Demand-Side
Management Report, This report highights accomplishments in 2008, and ilustrates the value of
paricipation in energy effciency programs and their success. Idaho Power is committed to dilgent
execution of energy efficiency initiatives, and in parnership with customers is demonstrating its
commitment to securing our energy future.
The 2008 Demand-Side Management Report shows significant achievements, including 107,484
megawatt-hours (MWh) of energy savings from Idaho Power's energy effciency programs in
2008. This is a 72 percent increase over energy savings in 2007. When energy efficiency achieved
through market channels is included, the total savings increases to 140,156 MWh or almost 16
average megawatts. This is equivalent to the average energy used by over 11,000 homes.
"Our 2008 achievements in energy effciency are an impressive milestone," said Theresa Drake,
manager of Customer Relations and Energy Efficiency. "We are very proud of what we have
accomplished as a company in partnership with our customers. Even with these great successes,
the opportunity exists to continue to parner and to save."
"Energy efficiency programs offer many possibilties, including lower bils for our customers
when they reduce consumption," Drake added. "This also results in reducing the number of
additional generation resources required and the need to purchase power on the open market, often
at a premium. Customers are absolutely making a difference by paricipating in these programs. If
you're not paricipating, now is the time to act. Although our request involves an increase to
fuher support energy effciency programs, customers continue to have the abilty to lower their
monthly bils."
Also today, Idaho Power fied applications requesting commission approval of three rate actions
related to various energy efficiency initiatives. One action proposes to increase fuding for energy
effciency programs. The second request seeks an adjustment to curent rates under the pilot Fixed
Cost Adjustment (FCA) or decoupling mechanism. A third action seeks rate recovery for the
installation of advanced meters, which wil provide the technical platform for additional energy
More - More - More P.O. Box 70 (B3707)
1221 W.ldaho St.
Boise.ID 83702
Idaho Power Files Requests with Idaho Public Utilties Commission Page 2 of 3
efficiency and demand response programs in the future.
These filings demonstrate success in achieving energy savings and underscore Idaho Power's
commitment to helping our customers increase their energy efficiency, providing more opportunty
for them to control their electrc bilL. The energy effciency successes happening in our service
area demonstrate that by being energy effcient, we all have the power to control our costs and
conserve precious resources.
Energy Effciency Program Funding (EE Funding)
Our energy effciency programs provide cash incentives, information and services to residential,
commercial, industrial and irrigation customers. As a result of continued expansion of these
programs Idaho Power is seeking approval to adjust the amount collected through the existing
Energy Effciency Services charge from 2.5 percent of monthly energy bils to 4.75 percent. All of
the fuds collected by this charge go directly to energy efficiency programs. None of the fuding
goes to the earings of the company. The filing proposes to collect an additional $15.6 millon
anually or an increase of 1.91 percent over the current anual Idaho revenue.
Energy effciency programs help customers save energy and money. They also help Idaho Power
reduce the amount of electricity it buys or generates. This ensures the company meets its
commitment to responsible planing for the growing need of electricity. To lear more about Idaho
Power's energy effciency programs or to enroll, visit ww.idahopower.com/eeprograms.
Fixed Cost Adjustment (FcA)
The FCA is a pilot rate adjustment that trues up fixed cost recovery as energy effciency programs
and other activities strive to reduce usage per customer. Its purpose is to encourage the company to
invest in energy effciency programs and activities. The FCA provides for an Idaho Public Utilities
Commission (IPUC)-determined amount of fixed costs to be recovered from these customers. If,
because of reduced electricity use during the year, the company under-collects the authorized fixed
cost amount, it can collect the difference through a surcharge. If Idaho Power over-collects the
authorized amount, the company refuds the difference though a credit.
Durng 2008, Idaho Power's energy use per customer decreased, in par due to increased energy
efficiency, and the company under-collected fixed costs from both residential and small general
service customers. The filing proposes to collect an additional $5.2 milion for one year. Therefore,
these two customer groups are proposed to receive a 0.0529 cents/kilowatt-hour (kWh) charge
beginning June 1.
Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI)
Responding to a changing technological environment and past directives from the IPUC, Idaho
Power is installng advanced metering across its service area. Installation of AMI wil reduce
operating costs associated with meter reading, and improve meter reading accuracy, outage
monitoring and management and electricity theft detection. It wil eventually allow customers to
monitor electric prices and become more energy efficient by adjusting their usage to take
More - More - More P.O. Box 70 (83707)
1221 W.ldaho St.
Boise. 10 83702
Idaho Power Files Requests with Idaho Public Utilties Commission Page 3 of 3
advantage of lower price. periods. AMI will also allow more customers to paricipate in more
programs, such as our A/C Cool Credit air conditioner cycling program, If approved, this action
wil increase residential, small business and irrigation customers' rates uniformly by an average of
1.37 percent, and would produce an estimated $11.2 milion in additional revenue per year.
Overall Impact of These Actions
If approved, these requests collectively wil have differing impacts on the rates paid by our
customers. The table below shows the average change:
Residential General Service Large Power Irrigation Overall
Service Service Service Percentage
Change
EE Funding 1.97%1.89%1.78%1.92%1.91%
FCA 1.35%0.09%0.00%0.00%0.64%
AMI 1.85%1.36%0.00%1.47%1.37%
Overall
Percentage 5.17%3.34%1.78%3.39%3.92%
Change
For a typical residential customer using 1,050 kWh of electricity each month, the monthly bil
would increase by $3.99 per month durng June, July and August and by $3.89 during non-sumer
months.
Idaho Power's applications are proposals open to public review and comment and subject to IPUC
approval. They are available on the company's "Regulatory Information" Web page at
ww.idahopower.com/aboutus. Copies also are available at Idaho Power offices or at the Idaho
Public Utilities Commission office in Boise.
IDACORP, Inc. (NYSE:IDA), Boise, Idaho-based and formed in 1998, is a holding company
comprised ofIdaho Power Company, a regulated electric utility; IDACORP Financial, a holder of
affordable housing projects and other real estate investments; and Ida-West Energy, an operator of
small hydroelectric generation projects that satisfy the requirements of the Public Utilty
Regulatory Policies Act of 1978. IDACORP's origins lie with Idaho Power and operations
beginning in 1916. Today, Idaho Power employs approximately 2,000 people to serve a 24,000
squae-mile service area in southern Idaho and eastern Oregon. With 17 low-cost hydroelectric
projects as the core of its generation portfolio, Idaho Power's 487,000 residential, business and
agricultual customers pay some of the nation's lowest prices for electricity. To learn more about
Idaho Power or IDACORP, visit ww.idahopower.com or ww.idacorpinc.com.
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