Idaho Power seeks approval to sell Oregon lines to OTEC for $154 million

Union County ratepayers could end up under a different utility model, with Idaho Power’s Oregon customers moving into Oregon Trail Electric Cooperative’s member-owned system if regulators approve a $154 million sale.

The joint filing is now before the Oregon Public Utility Commission in docket UA 180. It would transfer Idaho Power’s Oregon distribution system in portions of Baker, Harney, Malheur and Wallowa counties to OTEC, a move that could reshape how power is managed across eastern Oregon and within Union County, where OTEC already serves local customers.

OTEC said the change would expand its service territory beyond the four counties it currently serves, Baker, Grant, Harney and Union. The cooperative says it serves about 32,825 meters and nearly 60,000 residents over a 6,734-square-mile footprint with 3,084 miles of line. If the deal is approved, former Idaho Power customers would become OTEC member-owners, gain voting rights in board elections and be eligible for capital credits returned to members and communities.

The companies said the transaction, first announced Feb. 19 and filed May 20, is expected to close in early 2027 if it clears state and federal review. Idaho Power said it would no longer directly serve Oregon retail customers after the sale, though it would continue to own and operate generation and transmission assets in the state, including the Boardman to Hemingway transmission line. Idaho Power also said Oregon is projected to account for less than 3% of its total sales by 2030, and it has cast the sale as a way to concentrate funding, infrastructure investment and workforce on Idaho’s growing population and energy demand.

For customers, the sharpest question is what happens to bills. Idaho Power said that without the sale it would likely seek a general rate increase of at least 17% in Oregon. OTEC said former Idaho Power customers would likely see a 5.7% increase compared with current Idaho Power rates if the transfer is approved.

The Oregon Public Utility Commission said it will review the case through a quasi-judicial contested-case process, where parties can intervene, submit testimony and legal briefs, and cross-examine witnesses. That process gives regulators a direct role in weighing whether the change would preserve the service the commission is charged to protect: safe, reliable, high-quality electricity at just and reasonable rates.

OTEC’s most recent tariff revision came in February 2026 and took effect April 1, underscoring that the cooperative’s existing rate structure is already in motion as the ownership question moves through review.