PUC Approves $39-Million Edison Rate Increase for A-Plant Costs

The California Public Utilities Commission authorized the Southern California Edison Co. on Friday to increase its rates by $39 million a year to recover part of the cost of running its San Onofre nuclear power plant.

In the final step of determining the customers’ share of paying for the $4.5-billion plant, the PUC approved a previously announced agreement that lets Edison and its partners in San Onofre recover only $406 million of the $447 million in post-construction costs at San Onofre.

Friday’s action will boost by about 30 cents the monthly rate for a typical Edison customer using 500 kilowatt hours, the PUC said. That is about three cents a month less than customers would have had to pay without the disallowance, according to Edison.

Typical Customer

San Onofre went into full operation in 1984. Edison owns 75% of the plant, San Diego Gas & Electric owns 20% and several small utilities own the rest. SDG&E;’s share of the rate increase approved Friday is about $10 million or 39 cents a month for a typical customer.

The action addresses only costs that the plant’s owners incurred after San Onofre began commercial operation. Edison, SDG&E; and the PUC’s Division of Ratepayer Advocates had previously agreed that the utilities could not charge customers for $41.2 million of the costs.

It was an agreement that nearly $29 million in legal and consulting fees, $12 million in investment costs and other outlays were unreasonable and should be borne by shareholders, not electricity customers.

Earlier, on similar grounds, the PUC prevented Edison from collecting $265 million of the $4.5-billion cost of building San Onofre.

Second Line

Also Friday, the PUC said Edison can build a second transmission line from Arizona into California if its planned merger with SDG&E; falls through. Edison had asked for the second line before its move this year to acquire the San Diego utility.

The merger has been approved by the two utilities but faces public opposition and lengthy hearings at the state and federal levels. If it is approved, Edison might not need the second transmission line and the project will have to be reassessed, the PUC said.