Kaiser's offer to BPA was very reasonable
July 12, 01
S. PETER FORSYTH; Vice President, Northwest regional affairs; Kaiser Aluminum; Spokane
Tacoma Tribune
In your July 3 article, you report Kaiser "would not agree to temporarily curtail its two Northwest smelters - for reasonable compensation, including coverage of its employees paychecks - as other aluminum companies had done." The Bonneville Power Administration offered to compensate Kaiser at a rate that was 80 to 90 percent less than what it offered to other aluminum companies, which in our opinion was not reasonable compensation.
Kaiser offered BPA a full six-month curtailment proposal to help meet the region's need for more power, very comparable to at least one other BPA/aluminum company agreement.
Our proposal would have reduced wholesale power rates for the region, as BPA Acting Administrator Steve Wright acknowledged in his news conference announcing the new rates. Our proposal was designed to cover the company's estimated ongoing costs during the six-month period and would have provided basic full compensation for affected employees and continued curtailment-related spending for vendors, suppliers and communities.
In some areas, Kaiser's proposal was actually more favorable to the BPA than agreements it has reached with other customers, and considerably below the $38 per megawatt hour rate BPA agreed to pay some customers.
If BPA chose not to accept this proposal, as an alternative, Kaiser also offered to forego 10 percent of its contracted power - the same amount asked of all other utility customers in the region - for six months in exchange for the same compensation BPA has agreed to pay its other customers.
In short, Kaiser's proposal to BPA meets any open-minded definition of "reasonable compensation," but apparently not that of The News Tribune.
Kaiser Aluminum has a long history and significant investment in the Northwest and we want to work with the region to help respond to the short-term energy crisis. We also want to get back to making aluminum and providing jobs and other economic benefits to the Northwest.
S. PETER FORSYTH; Vice President, Northwest regional affairs; Kaiser Aluminum; Spokane