SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - In what could end the inquiry into some abnormally high power bills, Northland Utilities is dropping its plan to appeal three directives from the territory's power watchdog ordering the company to reimburse customers - even though Northland doesn't agree with the directives.

"At this time, we are not going to file the review and variance," said Jeff Barbutza, manager of Northland Utilities Ltd., Yellowknife.

Customers Michelle Beckwith, Albert Headrick and Kelly Pottinger will now see $1,131.23 dropped from their bills collectively.

Northland was planning to appeal orders from the Public Utilities Board requiring it to reimburse the customers. However, after Acorn wrote Northland to say the amount was "not material" and would not likely be considered for collection in its future general rate applications, Northland decided not to proceed.

Barbutza said the readjustments will likely be made later this week.

"We're pretty happy to have it finally come to an end," said Beckwith, who first came forward with complaints of abnormally high bills after her meter was changed last winter. Her power usage nearly tripled in January - from the January previous - reaching more than $925 that month.

Beckwith and her family recently moved to Edmonton, where she has been keeping an eye on the proceedings. She was glad to hear the company was dropping its appeal, which could have cost more in legal fees to put together than what was being proposed for refunding.

"It wasn't an outstanding amount for any of us, so why they would even want to incur more when it came to legal fees ... that was crazy," she said.

Beckwith will finally settle her bill with the company.

While she said she didn't appreciate the feeling she got that Northland didn't think she was telling the truth, she praised the territory's power watchdog.

"Thank god for the Public Utilities Board," said Beckwith. "They saw something that we seen too."

"So I wasn't crazy," she laughed.

Albert Headrick, who saw his power usage nearly double in one month earlier this winter, said he was ecstatic to hear the news.

The utility board directive ordered Northland to readjust his kilowatt hour usage from 2,853 kwh back down to 1,500 kwh for the month, since the company did not contact Headrick quickly enough to let him look into the problem and try to get it "under control."

Headrick said he had shown due diligence in trying to resolve the matter, having an electrician investigate the concern. He said since his meter was changed, his consumption has actually gone down. The old meter "was 31 years old," he said.

He said he was impressed by both the board and the utility company through the process."The board has dealt with me in a very professional manner and I felt I have returned it with the same kind of courtesy," he said.

"(Northland has) done a good job trying to resolve these issues in a very diplomatic way."

"Any kind of process in regard to any kind of customer concern has to be done in a very professional matter," he said. "It doesn't happen overnight."

Barbutza said the process proved the company's billing and metering systems were adequate and operating correctly.

"We would have preferred to have sat down with the board and the individual customers and deal with the issues, rather than in public," he said.

He said Northland was pleased the utility board accepted some of the company's responses to the regulators directives.

Northland will include a bill calculator on its website and hopes to have its bill design reworked to display consumption rates and costs more prominently by Oct. 1.

The company also suggested a new customer contact policy. When a residential customers monthly bills is more than $500, or is 70 per cent more than the prior year's average monthly consumption, the customer will be flagged and contacted before billing.

Joe Acorn, chairman of the Public Utilities Board, said he will respond to Northland's proposals sometime this week.