State stops NorthWestern Energy from charging customers for Colstrip outage
The Montana Public Service Commission on Tuesday voted 3-2 to stop NorthWestern Energy from passing on costs related to a 2013 outage at the Colstrip power plant to consumers through a rate increase.
After a malfunction shut down Unit 4 at Colstrip, NorthWestern Energy had to buy $8.2 million of electricity on the market to make up for the loss of power and meet Montana consumers’ demands.
The utility is allowed by law, with commission approval, to recover by raising rates costs incurred while serving customers. But the commission last March found that the $8.2 million NorthWestern spent to buy power on the market didn’t meet requirements to be passed along to consumers.
Commissioners Brad Johnson, R-East Helena; Roger Koopman, R-Bozeman; and Travis Kavulla, R-Great Falls, voted to reject NorthWestern’s request for reconsideration. Commissioners Bob Lake, R-Hamilton; and Kirk Bushman, R-Billings, dissented.
Read more: http://helenair.com/news/local/state-stops-northwestern-from-charging-customers-for-colstrip-outage/article_02006fd9-ab44-5fd6-811a-69ca747c94d8.html