Valley Electric Association won't have to raise rates after all -- at least through 2009 -- barring an economic crisis or weather-related issues, Chief Executive Officer Tom Husted said Friday.

During a Dec. 30 meeting, the VEA board had agreed to defer a proposed 7.5 percent rate increase on a month-by-month basis. Negotiations with Sempra Energy on a new power contract will ensure rate stability, Husted said.

The cost of power was one of the factors blamed for the proposed rate hike, another was the construction of a 230-kilovolt transmission line around Mount Sterling to the NV Energy grid, which now isn't expected to start until the summer.

"We have been seeking for some time to seek a lower market price for electric costs and expand our contracts," Husted told the board Friday.

Things started changing rapidly outside normal markets recently, Husted said. There's the possibility of blending their power purchases and extending them beyond 2012, he said.

Hydroelectric power accounts for 18 percent of the cooperative's electricity. The rest comes largely from gas-fired power plants.

Husted said VEA negotiated a purchase price of $64 per megawatt, which equates to 6.4 cents per kilowatt hour. That's a drop from 6.7 cents for 2009 rates.

"This opportunity to enter into this extended contract gives us rate stability for a number of years,' Husted said. "This gives us a great opportunity to get through the end of the year, baring any unforeseen circumtances, of having any rate increase."