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UMPA briefing: Levan's hydro facilities produce low-cost power; agency plans $195 million bond offering
Summary
Layne Burningham of the Utah Municipal Power Agency told Levan's council that the town's Cobble Rock and Pigeon Creek hydros have produced below-market power since their debts were retired in 2002. UMPA plans to go to the bond market and noted recent capital work on both facilities.
Layne Burningham, president of the Utah Municipal Power Agency, briefed the Levan Town Council on May 14 about UMPA's structure and the status of Levan's two hydroelectric facilities, Cobble Rock and Pigeon Creek.
Burningham explained that Levan operates a local public utility and that UMPA coordinates power supply across six member cities; surplus sales and a uniform cost allocation (a "postage-stamp" rate) help lower member bills. He said the hydros were financed beginning in 1987 and that their debt was fully retired in 2002. Because costs are shared, Burningham said Levan effectively paid roughly $6,219 of the hydros' original $1,554,000 debt service.
Since debt retirement, Burningham reported power from the hydros has averaged about $42.23 per megawatt-hour, compared with a pre-payoff average near $144.49/MWh. He also listed recent capital expenditures from the Hydro Capital Fund: approximately $265,000 for a control upgrade at Pigeon Creek in 2023 and about $25,768 for a bearing repair at Cobble Rock in 2024.
Council members asked practical questions about net metering for residential solar customers, differences in load factors among member cities (noting Nephi's higher load factor due to industrial customers such as Owens Corning), and how the run-of-river hydros operate behind the meter. Burningham added that UMPA expected to access the bond market on Tuesday for a roughly $195,000,000 offering and thanked Levan staff for assistance with documentation.
The briefing was informational; no formal action was taken. Councilmembers asked Burningham to clarify certain technical and rate-related questions with staff after the meeting.
