VERO BEACH — A proposed new deal for bulk power from Orlando Utilities Commission has been discussed since late July when Vero Beach city officials ending a bidding process to buy power on the open market, and City Council members finally got to see a rough sketch of what the terms might look like.
The council voted 4-1 with Councilwoman Pilar Turner dissenting, to direct utilities attorney Robert Scheffel “Schef” Wright to develop that outline of terms into a contract to come before a joint meeting of the city’s Utilities and Finance commissions on Aug. 31.
The goal of amending the city’s 20-year deal signed in 2008 would be to reduce costs and shorten the term of the contract. Wright said the proposal would enable Vero to shut down its Big Blue power plant and replace that capacity with peaking power from OUC.
It is not yet known exactly how much the net effects of all the changes in the new plan would reduce retail rates to Vero customers, but the city’s hired consultants have termed the potential savings to be “significant.”
Turner said the outline, combined with the presentation by Wright, still left way too many questions unanswered for her to move forward.
Turner reminded her fellow council members that Vero has not had the best luck negotiating power deals in the past and that recent relations with Orlando Utilities have been a bit rocky.
“This contract deserves the utmost scrutiny,” she said.
It was also brought up that the OUC contract signed in 2008 that is now adding to electric ratepayers’ burdens, was not available to the public to read before it was approved, that huge portions of important information, including pricing data, was blacked out.
Wright toldTurner that the deal would be fully vetted.
“This contract is not going to be redacted; we’ll give you the data as soon as possible,” Wright said. “We’re committed to transparency.”
City officials also committed to a “conversation” with Florida Power and Light about a recent offer to purchase the city’s approximately 2,900 electric customers within the Town of Indian River Shores for $13 million cash.
Mayor Dick Winger said any solution would have to benefit all the ratepayers and treat all the ratepayers the same to get his vote.
The partial sale is being proposed as a way to end the current litigation with the Town of Indian River Shores. Turner pointed out that Vero’s best negotiating position is now, while the Shores’ lawsuit against Vero has yet to be tried.
Should the city not fare well in court, it would be in a far less favorable position to broker a deal for the Shores portion of the system.
