The energy crisis that has swept the West Coast has hit Eugene.
As a result, energy prices are expected to increase 15 percent during the next year for Eugene residents.
The Eugene Water & Electric Board, which is the primary provider of electricity to the city of Eugene, decided last week to consider a price increase to cover the rising demand for electricity.
EWEB Vice President Peter Bartel said an increase beginning in March is unavoidable, but the size of the increase is yet to be determined.
“The employees approached the board and told us a price increase had to happen in order to cover costs, but they were unsure as to how to handle that increase,” Bartel said. “We basically told them to take some time to consider what could be done and then come back to us.”
The EWEB Board of Directors is scheduled to decide Feb. 6 how to handle the increase.
Part of the decision includes how much of an increase is needed and how that amount could be spread over the year in order not to overwhelm customers. EWEB will also consider tacking surcharges onto bills, EWEB spokesman Marty Douglass said.
Because of the crisis, EWEB will need to acquire anywhere from $15 million to $60 million in additional funds, said Dick Varner, EWEB’s rates and financial planning manager.
The reason for the price hike and the regional energy crisis is a complex one, Douglass said.
The main source of electricity for the city is hydroelectricity, though EWEB also buys electricity generated in California and from the energy market.
The biggest crisis contributor is the unusually dry Northwest winter. This has caused a shortage of rain and snow, leaving the Columbia River at its lowest level in Oregon’s history and reducing electricity production at Northwest hydroelectric dams.
Because of fish and wildlife preservation efforts, dam operators can’t lower reservoir levels below a certain point to compensate for dry weather.
A second crisis contributor is California’s loss of regulated energy. The majority of California’s utilities have sold generation capabilities to private companies, therefore creating a huge shortage throughout the state.
“Typically, there is a flow of power between Oregon and California,” Bartel said. “Now both states are in demand and can’t provide for each other.”
A third crisis contributor is the lack of energy conservation, both on the part of companies and customers.
“We have benignly gone along as individuals and businesses with the thinking that we don’t need to conserve any of our energy,” Bartel said.
Bartel said EWEB has done more conservation than many utilities, such as the company serving Tacoma, Wash., where rates are expected to increase as much as 80 percent. But EWEB’s efforts haven’t been enough to eliminate the problem, and the general public has still been using energy at normal rates.
“We want to come out with a public information program that will help people begin to conserve energy and possibly lower their own rates,” Bartel said.
The increase will most likely span the next two years, Varner said. EWEB will be looking at possibilities for next year’s increases depending on how well this year’s plan works.
“However good a job we do reducing consumption will affect the rates,” Varner said.