Case No. AVU-E-06-10, Order No. 30224
January 19, 2007
Contact: Gene Fadness (208) 334-0339
Website: www.puc.idaho.gov
Avista to buy power from Plummer lumber company
The Idaho Public Utilities Commission today authorized
Avista Utilities to buy up to 6.5 megawatts of energy from Stimson Lumber
Company. Stimson operates a thermal wood waste generating plant at Plummer.
Included in a sales agreement between Avista and Stimson
is an interconnection agreement that allows the energy created by the lumber
plant to be connected to Avista’s transmission grid.
HaleyWest LLC previously operated the Stimson facility.
Stimson has assumed HaleyWest’s obligations under an agreement that expired on
Sept. 30. The new five-year agreement is effective retroactively to Oct. 1.
The
Stimson generating facility is a qualifying facility under the provision of the
federal Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978, or PURPA. The act
requires that electric utilities offer to buy power produced by small power
producers or cogenerators who obtain Qualifying Facility (QF) status. The
published rate to be paid project developers, called an avoided-cost rate, is
set by state commissions and is to be equal to the cost the electric utility
avoids if it would have had to generate the power itself or purchase it from
another source.
Avista
will be the sole buyer of Stimson’s generation. Stimson will operate its
facility in such a manner that the hourly scheduled amount of delivered output
will not exceed 6.5 megawatts in any hour. If Stimson should generate more than
that, Avista can buy the surplus energy, but is not obligated to do so. If
Avista chooses to buy surplus output, it will pay Stimson the current month’s
wholesale market energy price or the contract purchase price, whichever is
lower.
A full
text of the commission’s order, along with other documents related to this
case, are available on the commission’s Web site at www.puc.idaho.gov. Click on “File Room”
and then on “Electric Cases” and scroll down to Case No. AVU-E-06-10.