Commission OKs Avista rate rise
Natural gas heating bills will rise $1.19 a month on average across Eastern Washington this winter after Washington regulators approved Avista Corp.’s rate request.
The average monthly bill for a home using natural gas will be $88.81, according to earlier estimates.
The slight climb in rates is much lower than first feared. The utility once sought an 8.1 percent increased, but scaled back its request as natural gas prices fell and Avista was able to procure ample fuel supplies at less cost than anticipated.
The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission approved the new rates Wednesday. They begin Nov. 1 for 138,000 customers in 10 Eastern Washington counties.
Conshohocken, Pa.
Ikea plans center near Tacoma
Ikea, the Swedish retailer of low-priced furniture and household goods, said it plans to build a 1 million-square-foot distribution center near Tacoma.
The facility will be located on 65 acres in Frederickson, in unincorporated Pierce County, and is expected to open in the spring of 2008. It will employ about 150 people and will supply inventory to Ikea stores in Western Canada and Renton, and stores planned to open next year in Utah and Portland.
Merchandise for the distribution center will be shipped through the Port of Tacoma.
Ikea has 235 stores in 34 countries; 28 of those stores are in the United States.
Seattle
Starbucks, Ethiopia haggle over names
The Ethiopian government, Starbucks Corp. and a coffee industry association are embroiled in a spat over whether the coffee names Yirgacheffe, Sidamo and Harar belong to the African nation, or can be used by anyone without restrictions.
Ethiopia wants Starbucks to sign a voluntary licensing agreement saying the country owns the rights to the coffee names. Seattle-based Starbucks said Wednesday that it wants instead to work with the country to establish a geographic certification for the coffee bean names, much like is done with Washington apples or Kona coffee.
Ron Layton, president of Light Years IP, which is advising the Ethiopian government on the matter, said the African nation doesn’t want to charge a flat fee as part of the licensing agreement.