PacifiCorp, a ScottishPower subsidiary that serves six western states, has requested state approval for a legal and regulatory realignment of the company. In Utah, Wyoming, Idaho, Washington, and California, PacifiCorp proposed the creation of individual state electric companies, a power generation company, and a service company. The new companies will be owned by a non-operating US holding company and will still be part of the ScottishPower group. The electric companies will be under the jurisdiction of the states in which they are located. The generation company will be regulated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), which also regulates transmission, and the service company will be regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The proposal is designed to permanently allocate generation costs and benefits among the six states PacifiCorp serves. Anticipating ongoing major changes in US electric utilities, the proposal will allow each state to create appropriate regulatory policies without affecting other states’ customers or treating shareholders unfairly. An important part of the proposal is that five of the new state electric companies will have long-term contracts for power supply with the generation company, to keep customer costs lower. PacifiCorp says that one of the proposal’s benefits to the region will be clarification of the rules for new power generation. Construction of new generation facilities by utilities and others will help combat the increasing power supply shortages in the West and, ultimately, lead to greater price stability.
In Oregon, PacifiCorp is working to implement Senate Bill 1149, which provides expanded electricity choices to certain customers beginning October 1, 2001. PacifiCorp has filed a resource plan outlining how the company proposes to allocate its generating resources between Oregon customers who will continue on cost-based rates and those who will be going to the market for their electricity.
Based on a report from ElectricNet.com
