Oregon Electricity Users Will Get Refund

Electricity customers in Oregon will find a small but perhaps satisfying refund on their utility bills later this year under a $15 million settlement with energy company Williams Cos., state Attorney General Hardy Myers announced.

Of the total, $8 million will go to residential and business ratepayers, $6.1 million into low-income utility assistance and energy conservation programs, and $900,000 to the state for legal fees and administrative expenses.

"We are reimbursing every Oregon ratepayer for damages that can be attributed to the actions of the Williams Companies during the outrageous energy price spikes of 2000-2001," Myers said at a Salem news conference.

The settlement stems from a three-state investigation into price manipulation and antitrust violations during the energy crisis of 2000-01. Attorneys general in Oregon, Washington and California launched the investigation in January 2001.

The Williams deal is the first of what state officials hope will be a series of settlements with energy companies involved in the unprecedented period of jumps in wholesale prices and revelations of market manipulation.

Williams was a relatively small player in Oregon, but the agreement provides leverage for further deals, Myers said.

"We are confirming that the changes in wholesale markets were the result of various forms of misconduct and not of free market forces," he said.

Companies remaining under the states' microscope are Reliant Resources of Houston, Dynegy of Houston, Duke Energy of Charlotte, N.C., and Mirant of Atlanta. Investigators also continue to scrutinize the now-bankrupt Enron, owner of Portland General Electric.

Enron gave impetus to a wide range of federal and state investigations in May 2002, when market schemes known by such nicknames as "Death Star" and "Fat Boy" became public.

Investigators are negotiating with at least one of the other suspect energy companies and could be near a settlement, said Kevin Neely, a spokesman for the Oregon attorney general.

Myers first announced the deal with Williams in November. At the news conference, he provided the details of a three-year plan to distribute the cash.

This year, a total of $8 million will go to residential and business ratepayers, based on each consumer's electricity use and each utility's exposure to wholesale electricity market.

The Oregon Public Utility Commission will work out the details and distribute the money to all Oregon utilities, investor-owned and public. The state's investor-owned utilities -- PGE, PacifiCorp and Idaho Power -- will distribute the money to customers in the form of a one-time credit on monthly utility bills.

Public utilities, which include municipalities, public utility districts and cooperatives, will decide how to distribute their share of the cash.

PUC officials said they have not determined the size of the refunds. "We need to gather a lot of data first," PUC spokesman Bob Valdez said.

The $8 million, spread among 39 utilities and 1.7 million customers, won't go far, said Roy Hemmingway, the PUC chairman.

"This is a small step for Oregon ratepayers," Hemmingway said. "But it is a first step, and I hope there will be more action to go after the players who committed abuses."

An additional $6.1 million will benefit low-income families, conservation programs and schools in 2004 and 2005. The nonprofit Oregon Heat and the state Oregon Housing and Community Services agency will use some of the money to help the poor pay their energy bills. The state will distribute $1 million to Oregon public schools to upgrade energy efficiency in their buildings.