RIVERSIDE – (INT) – Riverside Public Utilities’ strong financial reserves have helped ratepayers avoid large rate increases in the face of a historic drought while saving the utility and its ratepayers millions of dollars in borrowing costs in recent years, General Manager Girish Balachandran said Thursday.

The financial reserves comply with the reserve policy approved by the City Council and are a direct reason why Riverside Public Utilities enjoys a bond rating of AAA, a rating enjoyed by only 6 percent of water and sewer utilities in the U.S. as rated by Standard and Poor’s. That exemplary bond rating saves the utility millions of dollars when it sells bonds to pay for needed projects.

The financial reserves, while substantial, remain below the maximum amounts allowed by the reserve policy approved by the City Council. Specifically:

• The electric fund has $177.8 million in reserves, which is 52 percent of the maximum $344 million permitted by the reserve policy.

• The water fund has $64.6 million in reserves, which is 94 percent of the $68.7 million maximum permitted by the reserve policy.

Riverside Public Utilities also provides residents with water and electric rates that are significantly lower than in surrounding communities.

Those lower rates save Riverside residents and business owners an estimated $90 million each year compared with rates that are paid in surrounding communities.

The utility’s financial strength will become even more important in the coming years as the city makes improvements to its infrastructure for providing water and electric service.

Possible water projects include a recycled water system, a rubber dam to capture stormwater from the Santa Ana River for use in recharging the groundwater basin, and a new treatment plant.

Possible electric projects include a second electric transmission line to the city, which would provide Riverside residents and businesses with increased protection from major power outages.

Story Date: May 30, 2015