SPOKANE, Wash., July 31, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Avista (NYSE: AVA) has made annual filings with the Idaho Public Utilities Commission (IPUC or Commission) that have no impact on Avista’s earnings. These filings seek to true-up the level of costs in customer rates with the actual level incurred by the Company.
Natural Gas Adjustment Filings
The Company filed three annual natural gas requests that, if approved, would update natural gas rates starting November 1, 2026 as shown below:
- Purchased Gas Cost Adjustment (PGA): a decrease of approximately $2.5 million or 3.0%
- Fixed Cost Adjustment (FCA): an increase of approximately $2.4 million or 2.8%
- Natural Gas Energy Efficiency Adjustment: a decrease of approximately $1.4 million or 1.6%
Electric Adjustment Filings
The Company filed three annual electric requests that, if approved, would update electric rates starting November 1, 2026 as shown below:
- Power Cost Adjustment (PCA): an increase of approximately $14.6 million or 4.2%
- Fixed Cost Adjustment (FCA): an increase of approximately $4.0 million or 1.2%
- Bonneville Power Administration Residential Exchange (ResEx) Program: a decrease of approximately $0.3 million or 0.1%
Customer Bills Resulting from these Filings
If the natural gas PGA, Energy Efficiency and FCA filings are approved, residential natural gas customers in Idaho using an average of 66 therms per month would see their monthly bills decrease from $59.28 to $58.38, a decrease of $0.90 per month, or approximately 1.5%. The proposed natural gas rate change would be effective Nov. 1, 2026.
The net effect, on a revenue basis, for the requested natural gas rate change by rate schedule are as follows:
| General Service – Schedule 101 | -1.5% | ||
| Large General Service – Schedules 111 & 112 | -3.1% | ||
| Interruptible Service – Schedules 131 & 132 | 0.0% | ||
| Transportation Service – Schedule 146 | 0.0% | ||
| Overall | -1.8% | ||
If the electric PCA, FCA and ResEx filings are approved, residential electric customers in Idaho using an average of 939 kilowatt hours per month would see their monthly bills increase from $119.52 to $127.28, an increase of $7.76 per month, or approximately 6.5%. The proposed electric rate change would be effective Oct. 1, 2026.
The net effect, on an annual revenue basis, for the requested electric rate changes by rate schedule are as follows:
| Residential Service – Schedule 1 | 6.4% | ||
| General Service – Schedules 11 & 12 | 3.2% | ||
| Large General Service – Schedules 21 & 22 | 2.9% | ||
| Extra Large General Service – Schedule 25 | 6.6% | ||
| Extra Large General Service – Schedule 25P | 7.9% | ||
| Pumping Service – Schedules 31 & 32 | 2.6% | ||
| Street & Area Lights – Schedules 42-49 | 1.0% | ||
| Overall | 5.3% | ||
Purchased Gas Cost Adjustment (PGA)
PGA requests are typically filed annually to balance the actual cost of wholesale natural gas purchased by Avista to serve customers with the amount presently included in customer rates. Avista does not make a profit on, or markup, the wholesale cost of natural gas. PGAs ensure customers pay what Avista pays, dollar for dollar, only at a more predictable and stable rate throughout the year. These rate adjustments are driven primarily by lower wholesale natural gas prices observed during this past winter, which were below the amounts included in rates.
Fixed Cost Adjustment (FCA)
The electric and natural gas FCA is a mechanism designed to break the link between a utility’s revenues and customers’ energy usage. Avista’s actual revenue, based on kilowatt hour or therm sales, will vary, up or down, from the level included in a general rate case and approved by the Commission. This could be caused by changes in weather, energy conservation or other factors. Under the FCA, Avista’s revenues are adjusted each month based on the number of customers. The annual difference between revenues based on sales and the number of customers is surcharged or rebated to customers beginning in the following year. The proposed FCA rate adjustments are primarily driven by variations in customer usage related to weather and savings from participating in efficiency programs. The FCA mechanisms do not apply to Avista’s Electric Extra Large General and Street Lighting Service Schedules, nor to its Natural Gas Interruptible and Transportation Service Schedules.
Natural Gas Energy Efficiency Adjustment
The Energy Efficiency Adjustment is related to the funding of Avista’s natural gas energy efficiency programs, which are designed to provide a financial incentive or rebate for cost-effective energy efficiency measures. This adjustment aligns the amount that is collected in customer rates with the actual costs to operate the programs. The rate changes proposed reflect the Company’s request to set all collection rates to $0.00 per therm of usage effective November 1, 2026, in alignment with the Company’s recent request to suspend operations of its natural gas programs at the end of 2026. This temporary pause in Avista’s natural gas energy efficiency programs is to ensure these programs continue to deliver the greatest value to customers; the Company anticipates bringing these programs back as soon as the strong cost-effectiveness standards expected from such programs are once again achievable.
Power Cost Adjustment (PCA)
The PCA is an annual rate adjustment made to reflect the difference between the actual cost of generating and purchasing electric power to serve customers and the cost currently included in customer rates. The biggest reason for this year’s proposed increase is due to the expiration of a rate credit associated with the 2025 PCA, that expires October 1, 2026. That expiration, coupled with higher power costs and increased electricity use experienced this PCA year are the reasons for the rate increase.
Bonneville Power Administration Residential Exchange Adjustment
The Residential Exchange Program provides a share of the benefits of the federal Columbia River power system to the residential and small farm customers of the investor-owned utilities in the Pacific Northwest, including Avista. Avista applies the benefits it receives, which typically fluctuate from year to year, to customers as a credit in their monthly electric rates. Due to fluctuations in usage, Avista rebated to customers a level of benefits that was slightly lower than the level of benefits received from BPA. Through this filing Avista is seeking to slightly increase the level of benefits provided to qualifying customers in order to return the under-rebated balance.
Rate Application Procedure
Avista’s applications are proposals, subject to public review and a Commission decision. Copies of the applications are available for public review at the offices of both the Commission and Avista, and on the Commission’s website (puc.idaho.gov). Customers may file with the Commission written comments related to Avista’s filings. Customers may also subscribe to the Commission’s RSS feed on the Commission’s website to receive periodic updates via e-mail about the case. Copies of rate filings are also available on Avista’s website at myavista.com/rates.
If you would like to submit comments on the proposed rate change, you can do so by going to the Commission website or mailing comments to:
Idaho Public Utilities Commission
P.O. Box 83720
Boise, ID 83720-0074
About Avista Corp.
Avista Corp. is an energy company involved in the production, transmission and distribution of energy as well as other energy-related businesses. Avista Utilities is our operating division that provides electric service to 429,000 customers and natural gas to 386,000 customers. Our service territory covers 34,000 square miles in eastern Washington, northern Idaho and parts of southern and eastern Oregon, with a population of 1.5 million. AERC is an Avista subsidiary that, through its subsidiary AEL&P, provides retail electric service to 18,000 customers in the city and borough of Juneau, Alaska. Our stock is traded under the ticker symbol “AVA.” For more information about Avista, please visit avistacorp.com.
This news release contains forward-looking statements regarding the company’s current expectations. Forward-looking statements are all statements other than historical facts. Such statements speak only as of the date of the news release and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the company’s control, which could cause actual results to differ materially from the expectations. These risks and uncertainties include, in addition to those discussed herein, all of the factors discussed in the company’s and the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended Mar. 31, 2026, and its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended Dec. 31, 2025.
Avista Corp. and the Avista Corp. logo are trademarks of Avista Corporation.
SOURCE: Avista Corporation
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