18 



and its customers. As we noted earlier, we are finding that purchase costs for new 

 resources offered to Bonneville are declining, as shown in lower bid prices for our 

 competitive acquisitions and other programs. These lower bid prices will greatly assist 

 future competitiveness, but do not compensate for the other uncertainties facing 

 Bonneville . 



Policy and Program Directions 



The status of the regional load and resource balance indicates that the region faces a 

 steadily increasing need for resources, although at a slower pace than had been anticipated 

 in earlier years. 



Our forecasts show that under medium growth, the Bonneville system will have a deficit 

 of 465 average megawatts by 1995, and about 1200 average megawatts by 2005. The 

 need to store water for fish and the severe drought in 1993 caused tight operations and led 

 to the purchase of significant amounts of short-term power. 



Conservation represents the foundation of our long-term resource acquisition strategy. It 

 remains our resource of choice: it is least cost; it can be acquired in small increments; and 

 it is environmentally preferable. We fully intend to capture all cost-effective conservation, 

 and we are on a path to meet our target of 660 average megawatts by the year 2003. 



Bonneville is also woricing with the sponsors of various cost-eflFective renewable 

 resources, selected through a competitive process. We have signed letters of intent and 

 are negotiating to purchase the output of several geothermal and wind demonstration 

 projects. We are encouraged by the high level of interest demonstrated by resource 



