Rates are going down for at Sierra Pacific Power's electric customers in Nevada with an overall 1.4 % decrease (or $9.8 million) kicking in on June 1 of this year and another 2.7% decrease (or $19.8 million) starting June 1, 2004.

As a result, the typical customer using 675 kilowatt hours of electricity will see a monthly decrease of $0.82, from $71.06 to $70.38, or $9.84 annually, beginning June 1.

Recently the Public Utilities Commission approved the pair of rate decreases as part of an agreement between the PUCN Staff, the State Attorney General's Bureau of Consumer Protection, and a coalition of major utility customers.

Sierra Pacific Power president Jeff Ceccarelli is optimistic it's the start of a new trend.

"We are hopeful this signals the end of the huge run-up in energy costs that we have seen over the past few years and will lead to more stable pricing for our customers," said Ceccarelli, who also thanked all of the parties for their diligence in working through some extremely complex issues.

"We also are very appreciative that the PUCN recognized the challenges that were overcome to reach this agreement," he said.

You can learn more about the decrease and the agreement in a press release located here: http://www.sierrapacific.com/news/releases/ShowPR.cfm?pr_id=1153