1. Final order

BOISE — State regulators have approved a settlement with Idaho Power Co. that in January will increase rates by substantially less than the company initially proposed.

Base revenue is slated to increase by just less than half the amount that the Boise-based utility requested.

The settlement increases annual revenue by $54.7 million compared to the company’s initial proposal of just over $111.3 million, according to the Idaho Public Utilities Commission.

The average rate increase is 4.25%, net of reductions in the annual power-cost adjustment and the annual efficiency rider, according to the Dec. 28 final order. The return on equity is 9.6%.

Service charges will increase from the previous $5 per month to $10 for residential customers Jan. 1, and to $15 on Jan. 1, 2025. Small general service customers will see their service charges increase from the previous $5 to $25 starting Jan. 1.

The settlement also applies summer peak rates, in effect from 3 to 7 p.m., to more customer classes.

The commission determined that the settlement attempted to reach a balance between customers’ desire for a smaller rate increase and the utility’s recovery of the costs it incurs to provide service while also earning a fair rate of return, according to the IPUC.

Idaho Power views the settlement as a positive outcome for the company and its customers, Maria Willacy, a communications specialist for the company, told Capital Press.

“While the approved increase is less than we originally requested, we agreed to the settlement because we believe those rates will allow us to economically finance our operations and earn a reasonable rate of return while limiting the impact on customers,” she said.

“Striking this balance between affordability and investing in the grid to reliably serve our growing service area was our aim in this case,” Willacy said.

Idaho Power has worked hard to keep costs down for customers — a factor in the company not filing a general rate case in 12 years — and has kept prices 20-30% below the national average, she said.

“At the same time, we’ve been investing in the grid to make it more resilient to extreme weather and to reliably serve our growing population,” Willacy said. The company takes seriously its commitment to “balance affordability with providing safe, reliable energy.”

Organizations that provided input included Walmart, Micron Technology, Industrial Customers of Idaho Power and another customer group, the Idaho Conservation League, the state Irrigation Pumpers Association, Idahydro — focused on small hydropower projects — and the NW Energy Coalition.

General rate cases differ from power-cost adjustments, which are filed annually. Idaho Power and owners of Idacorp shares do not earn a return from a power-cost adjustment, which reflects hydropower generating conditions as well as supplies and prices of other sources such as natural gas and coal.