BPA has developed a draft Access to Capital Strategy with the goal of achieving sufficient assurance of appropriate capital investment and adequate funding over a rolling 10-year period. Some of the financing opportunities we will likely rely on to meet the 10-year target are Transmission lease financing, a Power prepayment program, conservation third-party financing, and reserve financing. Your comments have encouraged us also to develop and implement a more robust capital prioritization process.
A copy of the draft strategy is posted at the website listed below. Comments submitted on the draft strategy will help BPA refine and solidify it; this will be the final comment period before the strategy is implemented. All comments will be considered before the strategic plan is finalized.
Background: In fall 2011, BPA conducted the Strategic Capital Discussions to share concerns about capital access stemming from the large increase in expected spending levels. BPA initially identified alternative solutions and indicated that it would pursue some of those initiatives. In the spring of 2012, we conducted the Capital Investment Review, which, for the first time, presented a comprehensive, long-term view of the complete suite of draft asset strategies for BPA’s asset categories. We rolled the near-term capital spending levels, with minor adjustments, from those draft asset strategies into the summer 2012 Integrated Program Review.
Now, the Draft Access to Capital strategy addresses public comments related to capital access received through the Strategic Capital Discussion, Capital Investment Review and Integrated Program Review, and summarizes the strategy going forward based on discussions over the past 12 months. |