The Idaho Public Utilities Commission accepted Avista Utilities’ 2018 integrated resource plan, which lays out a strategy to meet customer demand for natural gas through 2037, according to a Jan. 17 press release. The utility expects energy efficiency and conservation measures to offset anticipated load growth, contrary to its 2016 resource plan, which found that low gas prices rendered demand side programs ineffective. Despite the availability of abundant, low-cost supplies, Avista does not expect demand to increase among its traditional residential and commercial customers over the 20-year planning horizon. The utility said that the lower prices are likely to spur higher demand among large industrial customers.

Avista expects a 1.3 percent annual increase in customers with average daily demand rising at the rate of 0.02 percent per year. The resource plan outlines a diverse portfolio of supply resources, including storage, firm capacity on six pipelines, and purchase contracts from supply basins. The analysis found that existing resources are adequate to meet demand over the 20-year period, and identified no deficiencies in all conditions except a “high growth and low prices” scenario.

Avista Utilities is a division of Avista Corp.