After more than four years of negotiations, Arizona Public Service Co. will begin charging customers in January for its purchase of a larger stake in the Four Corners Power Plant outside Farmington, New Mexico.
The average residential customer will see bills increase by an average of $2.54 per month to pay for the purchase.
APS, the state’s largest investor-owned utility, mainly serves central Arizona but its territory also includes much of Pinal County, Ajo and the Bisbee-Douglas area in Cochise County.
APS proposed in November 2010 buying out Southern California Edison’s share in the two newer generators at the plant, and closing the three older, dirtier generators.
Like other California regulated utilities, Southern California Edison was prevented by state law from investing in power plants that don’t meet environmental standards related to global warming.
Units 4 and 5 opened in 1969-70. The newer units are larger and cleaner-burning.
APS owned 15 percent of Units 4 and 5 and bought an additional 48 percent stake in them from SCE.
PNM Resources Inc. of New Mexico, Salt River Project, El Paso Electric and Tucson Electric Power also own minority stakes in Units 4 and 5.
Units 1, 2 and 3, which APS closed a year ago, opened in 1963-64.
The commission, which sets rates for regulated utilities such as APS, approved the rate hike as part of the usual year-end push to close pending issues, especially before two new members join the five-person commission in January.
Also last week, the regulators heard public comments on the proposal to eliminate the state energy-efficiency standard in favor of more flexible, utility-specific efficiency programs. The standard requires electric utilities to reduce the amount of power they sell by 22 percent by 2020 by helping customers conserve.
