Missouri House passes bill to lower electric rates for Noranda

A bill that could give Noranda the opportunity to get a lower electrical rate from Ameren passed overwhelmingly last week in the Missouri House of Representatives.

House Bill 2689, which is intended to modernize the regulatory process for electrical corporations to align the interests of those corporations with their customers, with specific provisions about aluminum smelters, passed with a vote of 142-4.

Upon passing in the House, the bill was read at a Senate hearing Monday and referred to the Commerce, Consumer Protection, Energy and the Environment Committee. State Sen. Wayne Wallingford, R-Cape Girardeau, is a member of the committee.

The bill allows for corporate and customer interests to align through the use of earning and rate caps in connection with service provided by electrical corporations, opportunities for corporations to recover costs, establishment of policies to encourage investment in infrastructure and a provision of globally competitive power rates for energy-intensive customers.

This language is similar to what was requested in a letter of appeal sent to the Missouri General Assembly by the heads of Noranda Aluminum and Ameren Missouri in February. The letter said legislation is needed to accelerate upgrades to Missouri’s electric grid, provide enhanced security and give customers more stable and predictable electric rates, all while creating and saving jobs.

Among Noranda’s specific requests was caps on rate increases and utility profits while providing additional layers of transparency to ensure more electric-rate stability and predictability.

The current bill contains a clause pertaining to provisions relating to aluminum smelters that allow smelters and electrical corporations providing services to those smelters to jointly submit an application to the commission for approval of an aluminum-smelter rate.

“This bill is good policy and a great opportunity to move Missouri forward,” said Warren Wood, vice president for external affairs and communications for Ameren Missouri. “It’s obviously important for the state and for Ameren Missouri customers that we find a way to bring Noranda Aluminum back to full operation if that’s possible.”

Wood said he is hopeful the Senate will pass the bill shortly “and then get it onto the calendar for Senate floor debate.”

John Parker, vice president of communication and investor relations at Noranda, told the Southeast Missourian in February there is no guarantee the plant will reopen its pot lines. But he said “without a competitive power rate,” the smelter definitely will not restart production of aluminum at the plant.

bbrown@semissourian.com

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