Grant PUD refinances some debt

EPHRATA — Grant County PUD will save an estimated $3.1 million in interest payments on its debt in 2020 and about $52 million in interest payments through 2044, according to Bonnie Overfield, PUD treasurer.

Some of the savings resulted from transactions made by the utility’s financial department in March, said Overfield as part of a review of the PUD’s first quarter financial results at the May 26 commission meeting.

The PUD pays for projects by issuing bonds, which are paid back with interest. In March the PUD’s financial team refinanced some of the bonds, dropping interest rates from 5 percent to between 2.6 and 3 percent.

Overfield said PUD officials had the money on hand to refinance the debt when interest rates dropped in March.

Utility district officials paid off about $190.7 million of the PUD’s debt in January. Currently, there is about $1.3 billion in outstanding debt. Utility district officials are using the money to pay for upgrades to, or replacement of, turbines and generators at Wanapum and Priest Rapids dams, a project that should be completed by about 2028.

Other projects funded through the bonds include improving fish passage and upgrades to the electrical system.