Continuing its series of interviews with the Northwest's leading energy officials, nwcurrent this month chats with Patrick Reiten, president of Pacific Power, a division of PacifiCorp.

In this exclusive interview, Reiten discusses the region's greatest opportunities for conservation and the steps being taken by PacifiCorp to increase energy-efficiency and acquire more renewables in the future.

Prior to joining Pacific Power in September 2006, Reiten served as president and CEO of Pacific Northwest Generating Cooperative (PNGC) Power, an energy cooperative located in Portland. Before his 12-year stint at PNGC, Reiten served as an aide to U.S. Sen. Mark O. Hatfield (R), handling issues associated with the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

PacifiCorp, which is based in Portland, but has offices in Salt Lake City, was acquired by Berkshire Hathaway's MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co. (NYSE: BRK-B) in March 2006. Serving nearly 1.6 million customers, PacifiCorp operates as Pacific Power in Oregon, Washington and California, and as Rocky Mountain Power in Utah, Wyoming and Idaho.

Following is the first part of nwcurrent’s exclusive interview with Reiten. Watch for the second installment in December.

nwc: How did your position as CEO of PNGC Power prepare you for your current role at Pacific Power?

Reiten: PNGC is a fine organization. I was privileged to help them develop a business strategy, and they will remain a great player. We grew into Bonneville Power Administration's fourth-largest customer. We started a real-time schedule operation from scratch. It ... was a great way of getting an overall feel of not only the policy side but the operational side. As a result of that experience, coming across the parking lot to Pacific Power is relatively comfortable in that I am operating in the same regulating utility environment, with the same supply and the same environmental issues.

nwc: Beyond its funding of the Energy Trust of Oregon, to what extent does the utility engage in conservation?

Reiten: Pacific Power operates in a three-state service territory. In the southeast Washington and northern California territories, we have a real responsibility to make program offerings, as well as in the other states in Rocky Mountain territory, our sister company. In the Washington service area, we’ve offered a full compliment of programs ranging from low-income weatherization programs to an industrial new construction program. We’ve recently extended a newly developed program called Home Energy Savers that provides residents with cash rebates for energy-efficient appliances and lighting. In the Rocky Mountain territory, there is a See Ya Later Refrigerator program to help customers replace less-efficient appliances. We do the Energy Star program and have several others. Those are great offerings.

In Oregon, we are committed to working with and through the Trust through advisory panels and board meetings to make sure those measures are effective. Through our Integrated Resource Plan process, we are looking at demand-response programs, load control and other measures trying to meet the commission’s lower cost requirement as we grapple with load growth.

nwc: What are some of the region's biggest opportunities for energy conservation as it attempts to meet the Northwest Power and Conservation Council’s target of 700 megawatts (MW) by 2009?

Reiten: One of the easiest ways of capturing early gains is in residential and commercial lighting programs. We've estimated that approximately 30 percent of energy savings opportunities are in those areas. As part of MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co.'s purchase of PacifiCorp, we committed to conducting a system-wide, demand-side resource potential study, tailored specifically to the company's service area. This study should be completed by June 2007. We'll use it to support the Northwest Power and Conservation Council's goals within our service areas and improve company program designs in order to take full advantage of the opportunities that exist. That’s an important step for us. Rather than take cookie-cutter programs off the shelf, we are doing an in-depth look at our service area.          

nwc: What are some of the biggest barriers utilities face in implementing conservation programs?

Reiten:  Historically, if you compare energy rates in the Northwest with other regions in the country, we’ve been relatively low cost. That is not a negative barrier. We want rates to be low. However, energy-efficiency measures can require co-investment from customers, and the low prices enjoyed in the Northwest can limit the importance some customers place on efficiency investments.

The longer-term payback can also be a barrier. That’s an education issue. We’re committed to providing tools and knowledge for customers so they can assess those trade-offs through the Energy Trust’s programs in Oregon and through Pacific Power-managed program offerings in our other states.

nwc: What is Pacific Power’s plan to acquire more renewables in the future?

Reiten: I expect Pacific Power and PacifiCorp to be the premier acquirers of new renewable resources in the region. That is consistent with the commitment MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co. made during the merger process. We have committed to acquiring 400 MW of cost-effective new renewables by the end of 2007. We are 64 MW shy of that today. I expect us to blow through that 400 MW goal.

We have a goal of acquiring 1,400 MW of renewable energy capacity by 2015. Seeing the commitment here today, my expectation is that we’ll blow through that too.

We announced two new wind projects recently: the Marengo project, which has 140 MW capacity, is in Dayton, Wash; the Leaning Juniper project in eastern Oregon is a 100 MW project. There are several other additional projects. We are actively negotiating with other parties on a strong and growing portfolio of renewables. That’s not just to satisfy a merger commitment — it’s critical to diversify our portfolio.

We’re responsible for acquiring least-cost and least-risk resources. This is an area that is very consistent with where I’ve come from. Adding cost–efficient renewable resources in a way that diversifies your portfolio is not only the right thing to do, but it’s good for business.