188 



Adding Up Costs 



w 



hen all the costs and cost savings are added up (see chart), the net annualized increase to Northwest 

 residents is $116 million. This realistic estimate of the costs associated with spilKvay-crest drawdown, 

 flows, and spill is good news for Northwest utility customers and wild salmon because it demon- 

 strates to regional decision-makers that saving salmon can be affordable when real-world cost saving 

 strategies are employed. 



How It All Adds Up 



Added annualized cost to BPA to implement spillway-crest drawdown, flows, and spill. 



Putting Costs In Context 



$116 million 



Adding annual costs of $116 million to BPA's current cost of producing hydropower would translate 

 to an increase of 5.9 percent in the wholesale rate that most of BPA's customers pay. This does not 

 mean, however, that electricity rates for residential customers would rise by 5 9 percent because the 

 cost of generating hydropower is only one portion of a residential customer's total utility bill. 



Other costs that are part of electric utility rates include transmission, distribution, and power 

 generation from sources other than the hydrosystem. These other components of electricity rates 

 would not be affected by increased costs for hydropower. Accounting for all factors that contribute to 

 an individual household's utility bill, implementing a spillway<rest drawdown, flows, and spill 

 scenario at an added annual cost to BPA of $1 16 million would raise residential rates by about Ic per 

 kilowatt hour, or about $1.20 for an average ratepayer experiencing a 2.3 percent rate increase. For 

 some public utility customers the addea monthly cost would be closer to $2 because public utilities 

 tend to rely more heavily on BPA hydropower. 



