Loading...
ERMU Misc. 11-09-2005 I �i 6. Elk River Municipal Utilities 13069 Orono Parkway phone: 763.441.2020 IElk River, MN 55330 Fax.763 4418099 IOctober 24. 2005 I "ho: Elk River Municipal Utilities Commission Jerry Takle I John Dietz Jim Tralle I From: Bryan Adams I Subject: Miscellaneous Issues Enclosed is the packet for the Wednesday, November 9t, 2005 commission meeting at le4:00pm. Due to my vacation and various projects, 1 have not had time to draft a policy addressing I antennas on water towers. This will hopefully be on the December agenda. Enclosed are the following articles for your review: I1) Two articles from October 2005 issue of Water World - addressing water difficulties in New Orleans from Hurricane Katrina. I2) Letter from Steve McDonald. I 3) The following letters from The Kiplinger Letter: a) Oct 14, 2005 Issue, The Auto Industry - This may represent future labor trends. I b) Oct 14, 2005 Issue, The Economy—Excess housing market could affect Elk River. Oct 28, 2005 Issue, Business Costs Ic) 4) Article titled"Electric Prices high in region. Is MISO a solution or part of the problem?" Taken from MMUA, October 2005 Issue of the Resource. I New Orleans Faces Long Road to Recovery _,..„,,,,,,,,,„,,,,,A,,,,,,,,,,,,,-.,,,,,„_,,,,„.i•,,,,, ,,, -, li r,i Even after the city of .= '' - ;'' ' New Orleans is pumped 3 ' , Y' ,� ';`au; f :',` t. I dry it could be � rtr;< . ry-� r.= months before the drinlung water, ; ie�t *r 1 - -'-'1'.=.;•, t wastewater and ''t "°'` ' l 1 ' , " ' � *; stormwater systems , '''-,1`` �, e., arc fully operational, -.'s 1....rt.,' l e i}. !.'"t' I according to experts .''•jT"`y' -. ‘,„, � - .-_, " +,`..i• ..- ,a��E'' <' "Y who have experience . '.,, : .�' . with the system a y : • ' _ -'.,"' _ .' T r _ Several of the } 4� / `. Several stormwater ,,, :I' . , yr ,,''.4t ' stations �.- pumping 3 _ �,•� :or ,-,Ir�. and the East Bank i ,A', . Al ` I wastewater plant • ,s i-' Allir �x ere flooded fol- `" ' • . �:� 1. V , lowing the passage Before Hurricane Katrina,the New Orleans stormwoter system could'pump more than 1 billion gallons ' of Hurricane Katrina. of water on hour. The East Bank drink ing water plant and the city's power generation facilities also saw some flood waters, although I water damage was relatively light. The West Bank drinking water and wastewater plants lost )ower and suffered some wind damage, but were not flooded In the distribution/collection systems,there was significant damage to the piping networks It and lift station systems The New Orleans Sewerage &Water Board's (S&WB) facilities shop, where equipment and supplies are stored, was also ,, i= .s: }�„ "; ?< flooded, according tosources J;•.,'•- ,l '✓nom,., , p'`''-'. 2 ;,,'`:1,f.- :;L r-f-,••'- !ittif,;*'''i;A°-=';',=-'''-f:' '•,4„;;;', The water board s staff was not spared when I ..` `'`� • A • y s �: floodwaters engulfed the city Of the board's 1200 1 : '~J � - employees, some 300 were on duty during the storm and all survived Many of those not on duty I -- `— Joined the wave of evacuees who left the city and are now "scattered to the winds," according to one source. Like the rest of New Orleans, the East Side I The East Bank wastewater facility in New Orleans was flooded wastewater facility is essentially located in a bowl by about 14 feet of water surrounded,by levies. After the storm, that bowl was filled with about 14 feet of contaminated I water, according to David Smith,Area Vice President for Veolia Water North America—South. Veolia has operated the wastewater treatment plants in New Orleans since 1992. "The whole plant is under water,"Smith said in an interview on Sept 12. "The one story I buildings are completely submerged, including all clarifiers and the administration building. Basically we have a complete submergence of all mechanical and electrical systems." The four staff members on duty at the plant initially took shelter in a third-floor control room in the sludge incinerator building. I "During the storm event the building started to come apart and blew out the windows in the operations control room," Smith said "They relocated to fourth floor but then the wind started to blow off the roof. They went down to the second floor restroom which was concrete III and hunkered down to wait out the storm " The operators were airlifted to safety on Aug 31. The 99-year-old Carrollton Water Purification Plant saw minor flooding and also suffered wind damage that led to a fire during the storm. A 50 inch water main, one of six huge distribu- tion pipes leaving the plant,ruptured during the storm. See COVER FEATURE continued on page 28 Nomi EN um NNE VIEWPOINT Big Pumps in the Big Easy Last year I had the chance to tour two of the That sensc of ownership was exemplified by a pumping facilities designed to keep New Orleans dry group of about 300 water board engineers and In the hours immediately after Katrina blew through, operators who stayed on the job as Hurricane Katrina I was pleased to see that the city hadn't flooded and swept over the city,risking their lives in the process. the pumps were doing their job.And then the levies As floodwaters from broken levis engulfed the city, broke and everything changed. many of the pump stations were inundated. I've toured a fair number of water-related facilities According to reports, one group of operators at in my capacity as editor of WaterWorld, but the New Pumping Station No. 5 had to swim to safety across Orleans pumping facilities were memorable both for the Florida Canal in eastern New Orleans.Another their technology and their history. group of 12 men were trapped at Pumping Station The pumping system was an interesting mix of old No. 4. They were forced to make a makeshift boat and new pumps.And BIG pumps—typing big in all out of a fence and managed to float to safety. Thank- caps doesn't even do them justice. Before the flood, fully, all those on duty during the storm survived, the New Orleans' area pump stations had the capacity according to a spokesman for the Water Board. to move 42,000 cubic feet per second or a little over When I think about the low pay and lack of tee- a billion gallons an hour. ognition most water system operators experience,it's One such station, the Bonnabel hard to imagine such dedication. Pumping Station on Lake Pon- My heart goes out to the people of New Orleans. tchartrain,has three horizontal and The idea of an entire city devastated,evacuated,and two vertical A-C Custom pumps. its populace scattered to the four winds is difficult The vertical pumps have a capacity to comprehend. How do you even begin to restore of 135,000 gpm,while the higher what once was? Not only were homes destroyed, but • volume horizontal pumps have a the basic infrastructure of a city and the businesses capacity of 500,000 gpm. that provide livelihood for its residents. The backbone of the system, I look around at my warm home, my comfort- however,were large screw pumps able life, and shudder to think what a fragile world developed by Albert Baldwin Wood, we live in. a New Orleans Sewerage and Water Board engineer. Wood developed his first screw pump in 1912. His innovative pump design gave New Orleans a fighting chance in the war against the water that surrounds it. Almost 50 of Wood's original pumps are still in use in New Orleans today. • G. Joseph Sullivan, General Superintendent of the Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans, gave a presentation during our tour of Pump Station #1. He spoke with pride when discussing the old pumps. It was obvious that the clean,quiet facility was well 7L4-6P4Put., maintained and staff had a strong sense of ownership when it came to their pumps. James Laughlin, Editor 1 ABDO EICK & 1 MEYERS 1.1,P 1 (:crtifiel Public iccourtturrts d' Go/mit/ants October 21, 2005 Grandt t{%Squaic 5201 Edon k%1•11u1. Silk!.3 O 1 }Auto,\IN 53136 Bryan Adams Elk River Municipal Utilities 1 13069 Orono Parkway Elk River, Minnesota 55330 Dear Bryan, 1 We have completed our review of the payroll benefits as requested. We tested the PERA benefits and deferred compensation deductions for the years 1998 and 2003. A sample of five employee's (including Pat Hemza) were tested and tied out to the payroll records with no discrepancies noted. We reviewed copies of the deduction reports submitted with the payments to PERA, Great West, etc and found that nearly all had been signed by the payroll clerk(none were signed by Pat Hemza)and appeared to be properly prepared and agreed to payroll reports. We also reviewed selected bank statements and found that the"cleared"checks for payroll items noted above agreed 1 to the records without exception. Based on the procedures described above, it appears that all deferred compensation and PERA deductions were made and deposited correctly. ' Sincerely ABDO,EICK& MEYERS, LLP Certified Public Accountants Aiett^i it.#94ohi,X41 Steve McDonald, CPA Managing Partner 952.83 90911 • Fa 952.835.3261 Mk 1t .acnu•1+aconi I Th Ilio e Kiplinger Letter FORECASTS FOR MANAGEMENT DECISIONMAKING I1729 H St. NW, Washington, DC 20006-3938 • KiplingerForecasts.com • Vol. 82, No. 41 IDear Client: Washington, Oct. 14, 2005 Out of the growing mess in Detroit. . . CURRENT FORECASTS I parts giant Delphi's bankruptcy, lousy sales for Ford, General Motors and DaimlerChrysler . " . GDP f Up 3.5%this year,3%in'06 this fall, despite dozens of new models. . . - . IITHE AUTO A necessary crisis is developing Interest rates NEW FORECAST INDUSTRY as the Big Three and their suppliers tPrime rising to 7.25%by end { '05,7.75%-8%by mid-'06 take on the United Auto Workers union (UAW) . Inflation NEW FORECAST IIItwill spark major restructuring. . . ♦ Gaining:4%in'05,3%in'06 painful but unavoidable if domestic automakers • -- hope to end their drift toward financial ruin. Employment t2.1 million new jobs to'05, 1.9 million new jobs in'06 Auto companies will prevail on costs ti Trade deficit as unions realize that the only alternative Rising to$633 billion in'05 to big concessions is yet more bankruptcies, .. , ._leading to an unraveling of the industry. Housing But Ford and GM will remain in danger If Sales rising to 8.3 million in'05,slight easing to 7.8 million in'06 of going under. Even with leaner production, ; Retail sales they need to make cars more people want to buy. ti Growth steady at 4%in'06 P y' pipeline Ford, especially, has little in the i eline 1 Auto sales to argue for a sales pickup in coming years. Falling to 16.8 million tn'06 II Complete economic outlook at The UAW will agree to a number of cuts KiplingerForecasts.com/outlooks in wages and health care and pension benefits. These costs set the Big Three back an average of $65 per hour per worker, I about 60% more than Toyota and other foreign makers spend on U.S. staff. Production line wages are likely to be trimmed by about a third, from a current average of $25 per hour, while health and pension benefits I will be reduced 50%-75%. These benefits are rising more than 10% a year and will cost the Big Three combined roughly $11.5 billion this year. Headed for the chopping block: Generous terms for idled workers, who get 95% of pay and full benefits for as long as they are sidelined. The Big Three will shutter up to 25% of their assembly plants and shed the same percentage of their combined 200,000-strong payroll. I It'll take about two years of struggle to cement these changes, partly because current UAW contracts don't expire until Sept. 2007. Sporadic strikes are possible, causing more pain for automakers. The Big Three's combined market share will probably fall to 45% by 2008 II from 57% now, and many smaller parts suppliers are likely to disappear. Even with lower costs, automakers will outsource more assembly, in large part to make it easier to boost output of hot-selling models. Rigid union rules on work hours and overtime often bog down such moves. The UAW likely won't budge on these rules as it makes other concessions. The Detroit automakers want to spend more time designing cars, something they urgently need to do better if they want to stay afloat. I The Kiphnger Letter(ISSN 1528 7130)is published weekly for$84/one year,5154/two years,$222/three years Subscription inquiries. 800-544-0155 or sub services@klphngercom by The Kiphnger Washington Editors,1729 H St,NW,Washington,DC 20006-3938 Editorial information Tel,202-887-6462,Fax,202-778-8976, Periodicals postage paid at Washington,DC POSTMASTER Send address changes to The Kiplmger Letter,PO Box 3295 Harlan,IA 51593 E-mail,letters@kiplIngercorn,or Web site.Kip6ngerForecasts coin THE The next three months will bring three more interest rate hikes ECONOMY by the Federal Reserve after a big rise in inflation in Sept. Inflation now is on course to end the year at 4%. The federal funds rate will be 4.5% at the end of Jan. , pushing banks' prime rates to 7.5%. The Fed will probably add another hike or two in the spring, ' helping to slow inflation to about 3% next year. The fed funds rate ' will peak at 4.75% or 5%, while prime rates will top out at 7.75% or 8%. A cool wind is blowing through the still-warm housing market. ' Signs of an imminent downdraft: The inventory of unsold new homes is 4.7 months' supply, the highest since mid-2000, before the market caught fire and began a multiyear streak of record-setting sales volumes. Houses are taking longer to sell, particularly those at the high end. ' That's setting the stage for slower average price growth next year of about 4%, vs. 8.5% this year, as higher mortgage rates deter buyers. 30-year fixed-rate mortgages will average about 6.75% by the end of 2006. ' Consumer spending growth will ease as a result, to about 3% from 3.5% this year, as fewer homeowners tap their equity for cash. The number of personal bankruptcies will remain high next year, despite the recent rush to beat an Oct. 17 change in the bankruptcy law. Data for third-quarter 2005 will show Chapter 7 filings at about. 400,000, a record. In the next few quarters, filings will hover around 300,000. ' The reasons include rising short-term interest rates, which boost payments on home equity loans, credit cards and other debt. And tougher credit card repayment rules will also play a role, particularly with low-incomers, who account for the bulk of bankruptcies. Driven by regulators, credit card firms are upping the minimum percentage of cardholders' balances that must be paid monthly to around 4% from 2%. 1110 Rememberour subscription y p on includes The Keplinger Letter online 16BUSINESS Budget for big hikes in 2006 electricity rates. . . 10% on average, COSTS much more in some parts of the country. In New England, Florida, Texas, California and the Upper Midwest, greater reliance on natural gas ' for power generation will push rates up by at least 15%. In fact. . . Some commercial customers will pay up to one-third more for power next year. Electricity rates have lagged the surge in other energy costs in the past year, in part because of states' regulatory requirements. ' But no longer. Electricity buyers will soon feel the heat as utilities pass along the soaring prices they pay for natural gas and coal. ' Have an underfunded pension plan? Consider freezing benefits. It buys time for employers that are up against the wall, especially now that Congress is eyeing a bill to tighten funding rules. When a company opts to terminate its pension plan altogether, ' it must buy annuities for plan participants. . .an expensive proposition. Freezing offers two advantages: It halts the accrual of additional benefit liabilities and allows the company to wait ' until interest rates rise and annuity prices fall before termination. Converting to a cash-balance plan isn't an option for now. A bill to clarify the status of such plans is bottled up in Congress. ' TRAVEL Travelers can expect to find few bargains this holiday season. Airfares, in particular, will jump significantly over last year because of a mix of higher fuel costs and especially high holiday prices. But with fewer flights, seats will sell out faster than last season. Longer term, flights to Europe may be cheaper and more plentiful. The U.S. and European Union are close to reaching an open skies agreement that will allow U.S. and European carriers more access to more airports. ;i1Pr Remember,your subscription includes The Kiplinger Letter online 1 MI NS II1M E NS NM 111111 5 — MI NU EN NM MN NE ir E Electric prices high in region-Is MISO a solution or part of the problem? by Steve Downer level is widespread throughout - , Ontario $115.16 IMP (USD) Regional transmission organi- the nation. __..... ...... _.__.._._ ss 80.00..200.00 zations(RTOs)were supposed to The American Public Power ' FE.HUB $111.14 7 save electric customers billions Association board of directors, i `' ;,; re ® 6d 400 '`� gNERGY.HUB: ',107.46 0 68: :: 71.00 of dollars a year. Six months into citing "concernalarm) 0 (indeed o „Q.' pi the Midwest Independent System with the dysfunctional nature of MNN.HUB:$111.12 _,-- -- - .�`"' �p Operator(MISO)electric market RTO power supply pricing," has �`� G �' o :: ILLN�OISHUB $10555 c.'i operation, it appears just as like- moved to intervene in a corn- ;�" o ��� :. SQ.00 ly that RTOs may cost consumers plaint by Connecticut parties . . .. . ,./ -- ,; . 0 46.x,: ;: 41, billions. against the independent system ;..... a -Ai4 y: .. A September swing through operator in New England. N�bnnlca ,., Yoac m '�'f ;; ; south central Minnesota saw APPA said it "has become in- 2y Pennsylvania �3 manager after manager of munic- creasingly concerned over the - -- - -- : .; - �' so 0: :: 20: over skyrocketing wholesale pricing regimes prevailig in az ., � ; �"�. - 10.00 ipal utilities gravely concerned course of 2005 that the power ♦ -t + CPNode • rado •- electric costs under the MISO RTOs with`Day Two'market de- Kansas 'y s' .:- i, ;'• : , regime. signs. . .have become in practice "L4' Witinia As one municipal utility man- a No Generator Left Behind' -.,-, ager said, "It's a great market to pricing regime." 3"0C -2005 09:2 sell into; it's not the hottest thing Generators with low operating Red means danger:Prices for electricity last October were in the $35 to $40 per megawatt-hour range to be buying from." for a small on-peak block of power.On Oct. 13 of this year, prices fluctuated widely but were generally That alarm at the grassroots MISO:see page 8 please very high.This slide was captured from the MISO market monitor website. The lb Volume 24,No.9 Official Publication of the Minnesota Municipal Utilities Association October 2005 MN MN MI MN MI NM IIMI 0 NM MI NM NM MU MN MO diril 1111. r /1/i11,V rir MISO: Prices are high, seemingly random fluctuations confound observers continued from front page awn generation double. iart of ,,,a, koaniitabn+ Ontam IMP SD the problem is, given the: coni- MCHGAN�itA:\59.341 (USD) IN woo ..2oo oo costs can obtain a clearing price plexit\ of .'\1150'\ operation and iFE t* . $ 46I 7, 8p in 1St)-sew [gl (nd markets, as its billing practices,cause and cf- + Nat!►tkiccta j C3 71: 74. i+ C1rEFtGYtiUF1 553.18 n 68. :. tt. \seri a, other RIO markets, feet arc difficult to pin down, + © 6 oQ gi "based on the le\trcmel) hie!) Fur c\antple. the MiS0 prix- + : . , © §:�:: hMlVt $55.55 -, G� s� 59.00 and going higher)price ot'natural ing scheme seems overs corn- + •' . ;; g t� 3: 56.00 '.a,-tired electric generation," plea to many. Settlement state- 11-LINOt� X52- + eta i:oio2o: 5503100 \PP.\ said. I li�eh-rust generators ments arrive after seven, 1.1, ,5;, ++ ++ ` © :� "eau and has e obtained cost re- 105 and I�5 da\s. I he statements 1' �' 0 38,00,41. 41,00 ` D 35.00 ., 38.00 eo\er\ (and more) through other that co\er 155 da_\s. tOr e\anlple, 4' ,+ +t+ aT� 1�t1P''` '"� Q °29..00- 332.tu�t[tt 60 mean," said APPA. also ha%e prices tvr the 14 day Nebraska +iota' ter ' x t® 26.00. 79.40 A 23.00. 6.00 \\"hen the \1idNest I)a\ 2 mar- statement. And the price for the + + + Per,I„•,r,sr_a 1 20,00 2$$,QQ 1Q. Qtai Let Mian in Ma\, mo-4 Itltltnet- enerc\ on the 155 day statement ++ . •• a an •10.00,. 10.00 pals were calliousfv reser\ing fair, ,a\ Oer. 1, 2I O`. trial he di I- .r7,.!;• + t••tsr.Iat,t + CPttocfe i.1411rent Si\ month, into the lerent than the price tier energ\ Kansas 4+Mssar: •+ ++ • i•'Q,t'�(* tr'sa -# H`+' market, shier see little to like. for that da\ on the 14 da\ stale- + + "I he high prigs continue and trterti \\e ha\e the ,ane concerns as "It gives them tlse cltlteremit I:...__'3 i ! 1(i', tiJ:{_j APR\,'' ,arid Ra. \kahle, I'L. opnorittnities to change the hill,- planning ill ''planning and operation,. director \itehals said. -there ,u`e 50 Ten minutes after the slide printed on the front page, prices in the MISO market retreated ... for \li-Qo,rri Rk r 1 ncr::s Ser- items the' e.,u charge sou on. :.;f: Mandleta+ Cr,:5rk• LMP SD \ie; \h\ of them can change." MICC'1wGAN.tiLt(3 s48.74 ) M 80.00 .200.00 r.hfIB $46.681 77.pp 80 00 /'''lis,, t1•,,I1 UAIne \t'"!e,' (ou/,rlc , ai i n !e e'N,\j,et'I + tooth Oak** fiik Pal 74.00.. 7?00 Ilu'ehi,iy,,rn I'!ililles (;ener;rl !\MIStl's operation of the grid ++ + + *+' C31�RGY11138.545.271 0 68:00:: 71.8 I \hkeI itltl s;lkd In .list, rellllli in,pcl til IllCa. UB $ 7.18 klitmts i% ycm l ," h•" thai;ks to Ilrhtnt, ling .� "4 ©tl,id t that hint- I:rilitie, to start all raatiyrl\ ex- 1fLLtn,otse: 4.39 '� ARann"''� Ct .vQ . 5300 oo=n • • * 4 C 3 47.06,. SO 00 I:IIio d '.t, market e\po,ure Ort pmts e combustion turbines, + + 1:n4et00 47,90 + + + c 41.00„ 44. the other hand."I'se ticker seen a ‘.\bile telling the uti!it\ to reduce + + CD 38.00.. 41.00 rice this ittli in ()ctoher,' generation front a rel,,ttivel\ ine\- i + !e," 7- 35 pp p , # ++ t� 32.00.. 35.00 I' nn in said "Il doesn't scent to pensise coal-tired unit. More + © 23.00, 32.00 Nebraska + „f CI 2(;.r30.. 29 00 I:i,tLe sense „ arra/ingl\, M15O has called mil_ + '. CI 23.01)„ ?6.004 + Per-: •',::.,:: ID 3 20.00.. . Ilk ()eraser:i1t)4, \\illntar \1u- itics to reduce output from coal + + Ohio 1Q 00,. QQ + is10.00. 1006 slop,! t tilities was pa mg $l:', plants. \chile ordering themto ,, + + + .t•,.;aud i + CPNode to 54)) per rneeatealt-holur tar a tire up high-priced diesel genera Kansas + * ++ • .'`"� ',..r",0 * � ,Ittali one-peak block it poster. tion. + + .t0 +t On (let. i i of this scar, \1151) It is possible these Moses were +' Naniecky lbpines prices on the day-ahead market taken to surra his\ ensure rel ia- ' „I for a similar block tit passu Nits hilit>, or snake sure a transaction w�: :u `s 124). didn't get curtailed Vet. all of Fifteen minutes after that,prices in Upper Michigan remained high, Manitoba and Illinois lower,then .., Paces also jumped ti'um April these increased costs esentuall\ ':i • ' .;;n,>= LMP I. \sIi e,: the \t'S(I market prier, stet ptissed on to utilities, ;std, ul- ' •'p,M 1M1CHiGAN.fftJB X171 81 (USD) _ N1.;,,.,,4,.A s\ere `cost-Iis_t,' to .tune I. ti ll;iids, their customer,. t :' 1• t, FEJ-L)8 165.94 a �AppO, 280Q0Q000 \t l:_ri the 'lull \\,is mitre iii 'mar- Some are even h i ,"t r. x'I s,• ;,i,::.;,:,::.,-;;.•t © 7100 !4.00 0 1 egtnnm to � p 71 00 ?400 !•et-ha,.d price, suggest that smaller placers art .?�• • ` !' "" `> `:'f) "' CP4ERGY.1J8 $160 © 68.00 71 l� of Ilrte il: „ i, being 1 \ ,, ,• .f4.01:4' :,ij'," ",ti .r �� f 15, 07. e t ,r-t :t 'I e,ui nal 'i!.trned-hs h ,' r �2�ppq ppj t r hi Ila cn• ;8 w ,'t,,. a''; :,.�' `i." r (� 59 00 62 b0 n;,:r.:n,tl li „ ) Oli II ANN.h#18C 167,15 tg:',e'':M ' t 5600 5900 I ices' m.\p-t ' { oy.'' ., ' !it „ ..:nd Ittl, elected \5I' \ Lt_tlOSH_Je $157.1'48 b ,`'+% `'�' `t" tai 50.0000 5300 I e e',, gorier in the re o 1'44' '4,,,.+"• •,'It' ' $Q node i\l i;marts. at , 1 ,1,'11. and :l,1lt (1a, dlsappe::red, II a hi` Ht-len,, • . . #•. `? �`+� ti, sir r3 1,71.3?) :. i9:81 ''s ? ' -,4,?;154 )"�,•' '. ',r• ',""•.:','",,,,,,10'' '' ` .s C7 41 00 44.06 ! oon) Ueic�2 -i()I'ei 'I:L.:!1\\,Ili- IntlIsilli,saon own* .Ilillt\ with • , •,,,•, ,i,Y.,, i.0"1+. " ' '1+ CI 38 ix +11. 0 'will 1\i\\ ,i) ,.'l 1 ‘,..5., i 1 , , , �„ t'is ♦J,�•" r�' ', 31, f,• Q ) r. per •ul ,t:tnti.tl grncr,tt i n is short nl' C7 3A' t w°, �. ''-4-: a; .00 32 00 \t\\It ti'1I)el 1 t, tiirrni" a ret,,- ea'�aeit'. ;licit alt ir;trk is is , N ,,- "� x- e :I a ( Nebraska -,,N k t:1 261 29 OD ii\;I\ Ii•t\-c•o>t fisc MIIIIi(e p:;i- ,ht,it. It the UI rkel i, \hurt, the "r',•.•. - ,.,\' rs:r >_• •--4+1. i'-' m 2203.(40 7300 rt{. :he pile. t\etc 's_'',.1 s ..:its pro;e i, 11ig1�,ani tl:e utility gets a ,,,. '";i.0, , • ,,yet.: • 15.00 20.06 ''' -10 00. 10 00 ) (pher It, ;risme !\pir.tl high prier for the Power it sell, AKA- .1",1,;4'•':?'Y Z ; . k w + CPNods c I' '1 a ed ,inl:ln tiiini?,, and u'an.rats. \t the bottom i fKansas '+rS=' * tnr� if 1\ '. L 'let ,' :'.t* \Ifs( I athllinistr:iti\c fees iiia\ the chain, a ,mail municap:d util- `•3' leiti -• ,, � 's, 44,44 add up iii $.,2:, iscr \1\\"11. iiri it.\ \1 tilt 'tih.tunti,il market expo- •'i► •�':;. . yy '"'� peak. sure cart lie in an untenable posi- 1 Willmar \lunieip,t! I till tie-, tion. 1•11111' buy; Ic,s Ihtni fisc lscrt.:nt of its 'I he market is also Nhipsa\vittg Prices completed the circle,returning to the very high prices seen 35 minutes earlier. energy\,on an annual hast,,on the the local genet ati ami plant. I oad market. said tienerai \last; er growth typically follows a fairly loss cost plains at the market to get the poster and energy de- On the other hand, Wattle said Mike Nitchals.'Ihat market ener- straight line curse. Yet, at Ii\e price. Other munietpals arc 'ice- litered.'the MISO process to an- \1RFS, like a number il` other gt acet,itrlts for approximately 20 minute intervals. 51150', loco- ing dramatic price changer after al\/e needed transmission is, by municipal or,ganl/ata in,owns it, pere.ent of its energy costs. tional marginal price, change submitting schedule,. but before all accounts. cumbersomc, ex- own resources and has long-term -It's \en, vert expenrise," dramatically. Price used to corm- starting local generation. pensive and otters leads to results firm transmission rights, has the Nitchats said. spond to load growth that may "Wholesale rates are where rr- that defy real-world evidence. necessary software to verify Rut how much of the jump in not apply any more. A halt`hour tail rates where a couple years Fatoruble purchases are often MISO settlement statements, artd electric prices can be laid at the after the market price reaches a ago," said Daryl Mohlenhrock, curtailed, by MISO, because it has hired the people it needs to It l'O'\ door,' level ss here it makes sense to superintendent of Mountain take determined there is insufficient deal with market activities. I or the cost of natural gas, fuel start up local generation,the mar- Municipal Utilities. "Our power transmission capacity available, the first five months of market oil, coal and coal delivery hate ket price Inay drop. the price cost adjustment is three to four through a mechanism known as operation, MISO has paid MRI:S all increased. And more even- seems to run stills fuel costs. Duel cents a kilowatt hour,"I hat's what transmission line-loading relief $67,000 more than NIRI.S has sive, neve units are coming on costs, for many municipals, are we used to buy it for." ("I't.Rs). Ray Wahle, of !ORES, paid MiSO, and that on over$20 line. One consultant estimated too high. To make platters Norse, mu- said it seems like lewer'fl.Rs are million worth of business, that out of a penny and a half in- Companies are also starting to nictpals caught on the market being issued today', but this is "I am very pleased with our crease in the cost of a kilowatt- quote market price as their selling Lind few, if any, generators will- "not necessarily good news. MIS() market results," Wahle hour, three quarters is due to in- price rather than stating a fixed ing to offer a wholesale power 'transmission providers have got- said. "However, the MISO mar- creased fuel prices. Some manic- price 'I his is because they can supply contract. II'you can find a ten better at refusing transntis- ipals hate seen the cost of their sell any' plant they have- even a favorable contract, it is a struggle sion service in the first place," Market see facing page 8/October 2005 The Resource