Vote Shows Support For Utility Deal

Inland Power & Light Co. members have all but embraced a proposed merger with Lincoln Electric Cooperative Inc.

Mail-in votes counted through Wednesday are overwhelmingly in favor of the transaction, according to Manager Richard Heitman.

And the 6,000 votes cast are more than the 5,164 that will be needed to validate the outcome, he said Thursday.

The final vote will be tabulated Saturday at Inland’s annual meeting, which starts at 9:30 a.m. at East Valley High School.

Lincoln members approved the merger at their meeting last Friday in Davenport, the cooperative’s headquarters.

Spokane-based Inland serves 25,000 customers from northern Spokane County south to Asotin County. All of Lincoln’s 1,400 members live within that county.

The two cooperatives have been exploring a consolidation for more than a year.

If lenders to Inland and Lincoln do not oppose the move, the transaction could close by the end of the year.

A merger, Heitman said, will allow the utilities to spread their costs over a larger customer base. Also, seasonal swings in electricity usage will be moderated because Inland demand peaks in the winter, Lincoln in the summer.

Steadier load makes it possible to buy electricity more cheaply.

Inland has been discussing longterm purchases of electricity from the Washington Water Power Co. The Bonneville Power Administration has been the sole supplier to Lincoln and Inland since they were organized.

Heitman said Inland will delay a decision on future power contracts until after Bonneville unveils its new rate plans later this year.