Apr 19 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Jack Money The Oklahoman

About half of 400 people surveyed on whether some electrical distribution lines should be buried in Oklahoma to reduce the numbers and lengths of outages say they would be willing to pay more each month to have that done, the state's Corporation Commission says.

The state agency released the survey results -- part of a much larger study evaluating whether such work should be required from electrical service providers -- this week.

The remainder of the study, which looks at burying costs, the expense for other restorative efforts and expected weather issues during coming years, should be finished before the end of April, officials said.

"These types of surveys are instructive," said Jeff Cloud, the commission's chairman. "But it is not the end-all answer to this question."

The survey's goals

Cloud said the survey does provide the agency with information about how consumers were impacted by the outages.

Taking the survey's results, the commission's staff estimated the December ice storm cost Oklahomans about $780 million. And that doesn't include what the utilities had to spend to restore their systems.

Previously, the commission reported utilities spent at least $660 million during the past decade to repair the state's electrical system after wind and ice storms.

The utilities -- Oklahoma Gas and Electric Co., Public Service Co. of Oklahoma, and the state's smaller companies and cooperatives -- all are being queried as part of the study.

One survey goal is to discover just how many miles of electrical line Oklahoma has, said Andrew Tevington, the commission's public utilities division deputy director.

Providing 'the most reliable' service

Tevington said the commission's staff also is evaluating how much it might cost to bury those types of lines. He said research indicates that large transmission lines are best left alone, given that the expense to bury those ranges from $6 million to $116 million a mile.

Burying lines getting the power from substations to neighborhoods and from neighborhood distribution networks of lateral lines to homes, though, look more affordable, he said. Tevington noted that power lines in many new housing developments are being put underground now.

In older neighborhoods where alleys don't exist, it may make more sense to bury the lines along public rights of way in front of homes.

Cloud said the commission's goal is to gather all the information it can, including this snapshot survey of 401 people.

"While this data is somewhat instructive, it is going to have to a be a decision that is made with all the factors considered, including the impact on the electricity providers, time frames, the potentials for future storms and actual costs" to do the work, Cloud said.

"A general impression I get is that people are in general agreement there is a nexus between reliability and burying the lines. The question for the commission is how do we get there to provide the most reliable and affordable service we can," Cloud said.