For more information contact:
Dean Boyer, Director of Communications
(360) 741-2676, dboyer@wpuda.org

Nov. 2, 2009
PUDs allocated tax-credit bonds for renewable energy projects

OLYMPIA – Public utility districts in Washington will receive more than half the $800 million in Clean Renewable Energy Bonds allocated for public power utilities by the federal government.
The Treasury Department last week allocated $2.2 billion in CREB bonding authority to 805 recipients across the country. Of that amount, $800 million was designated for public power utilities, with six Washington PUDs receiving $403 million. 

The bonds offer a 70 percent credit against federal taxes in lieu of interest payments. They were created in 2008 to provide public power utilities and local government agencies an incentive to investors comparable to the federal Production Tax Credit available to private developers and investor-owned utilities. The IRS allocates CREB authority to governmental agencies, public power utilities, and electric cooperatives.
PUDs receiving CREB allocations were:

• Grant PUD was allocated $140 million in bonding authority, which it plans use for incremental power enhancements at Wanapum Dam on the Columbia River. The PUD has already replaced five turbines at Wanapum. The remaining turbines will be replaced over the next three to four years, and all 10 generators will be replaced over the next eight years utilizing the CREB funds.

• Pend Oreille PUD was allocated $68.7 million in bonding authority, which it plans to use in refurbishing the four turbines and generators at Box Canyon Dam, which was relicensed by the FERC in 2005 for another 50 years. The project is expected to increase generation at the hydropower project by 8 percent.

• Clallam PUD was allocated $36.2 million and Mason PUD No. 3 was allocated $48.2 million, which they plan to use to help finance the Mustang Ridge wind project proposed by Energy Northwest in Benton County. Energy Northwest is in the pre-development phase of the project and is seeking interested participants before determining the size of the wind farm, which could be online by the end of 2012. 

• Clallam PUD ($19.4 million), Grays Harbor PUD ($63.3 million), and Pacific PUD ($27.1 million) received bonding authority for the Radar Ridge wind project being developed in Pacific County, also by Energy Northwest.  

“Washington PUDs are leaders in developing clean, renewable sources of energy,” said Steve Johnson, executive director of the Washington Public Utility Districts Association. “The CREB allocations are recognition of that leadership and will help our members continue to meet the needs of their communities and the state.”

Seattle City Light ($71.2 million) and Tacoma Power ($25.6 million) also received CREB allocations, bringing Washington’s share of the total allocated nationwide to public power utilities to $499.8 million, or 62 percent.

The IRS also allocated $1.4 billion in CREB bonding authority to electric cooperatives and government entities for renewable energy projects. Recipients have up to three years to issue the bonds.

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The Washington PUD Association is a non-profit organization representing 27 public utility districts and Energy Northwest, a consortium of public power utilities that develops and operates power generation projects for the Northwest.