PG&E Claims DWR is Delaying Ratepayers? $471 Million Payback

The Department of Water Resources is holding on to nearly half a billion dollars in excess of its 2004 energy revenue requirements, stalling needed rate reductions, Pacific Gas & Electric stated. ?[R]ecently it has come to our attention that DWR has not yet agreed to immediately implement comparable rate reductions of as much as $471 million in its 2004 power charges to California customers,? PG&E claimed in a February 20 letter. The letter, also signed by the California Manufacturers & Technology Association and The Utility Reform Network, asserts DWR is not sending the public $197 million it will get from the El Paso Corp. settlement and $275 million it collected above the agency?s operating needs. True-ups of DWR power costs have been an ongoing tug of war. ?We are in a full-blown analysis? of our costs, said DWR spokesperson Oscar Hildalgo. ?We have no bonuses here, nor a profit-making culture,? he added. Hidalgo noted a true-up is a complicated process involving volatile gas projections and future capacity needs, adding that the El Paso deal was not fully executed. DWR expects to release its revenue reconciliation the second week of March.