Fair Value (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2013

Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]

Fair Value Inputs, Liabilities, Quantitative Information [Table Text Block]

The following table presents the quantitative information which was used to estimate the fair values of the Level 3 assets and liabilities above as of December 31, 2013 (dollars in thousands):

	Fair Value (Net) at
	December 31, 2013			Valuation Technique	Unobservable Input	Range
Power exchange agreement	$	(14,441	)	Surrogate facility pricing	O&M charges	$30.18-$53.90/MWh (1)
					Escalation factor	3% - 2014 to 2019
					Transaction volumes	234,064 - 397,116 MWhs
Power option agreement	(775		)	Black-Scholes- Merton	Strike price	$55.62/MWh - 2016
						$65.31/MWh - 2019
					Delivery volumes	157,517 - 287,147 MWhs
					Volatility rates	0.20 (2)
Natural gas exchange agreement	(1,219		)	Internally derived weighted average cost of gas	Forward purchase prices	(3)
					Forward sales prices	$3.98 - $4.57/mmBTU
					Purchase volumes	(3)
					Sales volumes	150,000 - 310,000 mmBTUs

(1) The average O&M charges for the delivery year beginning in November 2013 were $40.93 per MWh. For rate-making purposes the average O&M calculations vary slightly between regulatory jurisdictions. For Washington, the average O&M charges were $42.44 and the average O&M charges for Idaho were $40.93 for the delivery year beginning in 2013.

(2) The estimated volatility rate of 0.20 is compared to actual quoted volatility rates of 0.31 for 2014 to 0.20 in October2016.

(3) As of December 31, 2013, all contractual purchases have been made by Avista Corp. under the original natural gas exchange agreement; therefore, the Company did not estimate forward purchase volumes and forward purchase prices as these are not significant inputs to the calculation at December 31, 2013. On January 31, 2014, the Company executed an extension to this agreement; therefore, during the first quarter of 2014, forward purchase volumes and forward purchase prices will again be a significant input to the calculation and the Company will resume estimating these amounts.

Carrying Value and Estimated Fair Value of Financial Instruments

	2013				2012
	Carrying Value		Estimated Fair Value		Carrying Value		Estimated Fair Value
Long-term debt (Level 2)	$	951,000	$	1,054,512	$	951,000	$	1,164,639
Long-term debt (Level 3)	342,000		329,581		302,000		320,892
Nonrecourse long-term debt (Level 3)	17,838		18,636		32,803		35,297
Long-term debt to affiliated trusts (Level 3)	51,547		37,114		51,547		43,686

Fair Value of Assets And Liabilities Measured on Recurring Basis

	Level 1		Level 2		Level 3		Counterparty and Cash Collateral Netting (1)			Total
December 31, 2013
Assets:
Energy commodity derivatives	$	—	$	55,243	$	—	$	(51,367	)	$	3,876
Level 3 energy commodity derivatives:
Power exchange agreement	—		—		339		(339		)	—
Foreign currency derivatives	—		7		—		(6		)	1
Interest rate swaps	—		33,543		—		—			33,543
Investments and funds held for clients:
Money market funds	11,180		—		—		—			11,180
Securities available for sale:
U.S. government agency	—		61,078		—		—			61,078
Municipal	—		3,518		—		—			3,518
Corporate fixed income – financial	—		3,000		—		—			3,000
Corporate fixed income – industrial	—		765		—		—			765
Certificate of deposits	—		1,000		—		—			1,000
Funds held in trust account of Spokane Energy	1,600		—		—		—			1,600
Deferred compensation assets:
Fixed income securities (2)	1,960		—		—		—			1,960
Equity securities (2)	6,470		—		—		—			6,470
Total	$	21,210	$	158,154	$	339	$	(51,712	)	$	127,991
Liabilities:
Energy commodity derivatives	$	—	$	72,895	$	—	$	(60,099	)	$	12,796
Level 3 energy commodity derivatives:
Natural gas exchange agreement	—		—		1,219		—			1,219
Power exchange agreement	—		—		14,780		(339		)	14,441
Power option agreement	—		—		775		—			775
Foreign currency derivatives	—		6		—		(6		)	—
Total	$	—	$	72,901	$	16,774	$	(60,444	)	$	29,231

	Level 1		Level 2		Level 3		Counterparty and Cash Collateral Netting (1)			Total
December 31, 2012
Assets:
Energy commodity derivatives	$	—	$	81,640	$	—	$	(76,408	)	$	5,232
Level 3 energy commodity derivatives:
Power exchange agreement	—		—		385		(385		)	—
Foreign currency derivatives	—		7		—		(7		)	—
Interest rate swaps	—		7,265		—		—			7,265
Investments and funds held for clients:
Money market funds	15,084		—		—		—			15,084
Securities available for sale:
U.S. government agency	—		48,496		—		—			48,496
Municipal	—		848		—		—			848
Corporate fixed income – financial	—		5,026		—		—			5,026
Corporate fixed income – industrial	—		3,936		—		—			3,936
Certificate of deposits	—		1,015		—		—			1,015
Funds held in trust account of Spokane Energy	1,600		—		—		—			1,600
Deferred compensation assets:
Fixed income securities (2)	2,010		—		—		—			2,010
Equity securities (2)	5,955		—		—		—			5,955
Total	$	24,649	$	148,233	$	385	$	(76,800	)	$	96,467
Liabilities:
Energy commodity derivatives	$	—	$	119,390	$	—	$	(86,115	)	$	33,275
Level 3 energy commodity derivatives:
Natural gas exchange agreement	—		—		2,379		—			2,379
Power exchange agreement	—		—		19,077		(385		)	18,692
Power option agreement	—		—		1,480		—			1,480
Foreign currency derivatives	—		34		—		(7		)	27
Interest rate swaps	—		1,406		—		—			1,406
Total	$	—	$	120,830	$	22,936	$	(86,507	)	$	57,259

(1) The Company is permitted to net derivative assets and derivative liabilities with the same counterparty when a legally enforceable master netting agreement exists. In addition, the Company nets derivative assets and derivative liabilities against any payables and receivables for cash collateral held or placed with these same counterparties.

(2) These assets are trading securities and are included in other property and investments-net on the Consolidated Balance Sheets.

Reconciliation for All Assets Measured At Fair Value on a Recurring Basis Using Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)

	Natural Gas Exchange Agreement			Power Exchange Agreement			Power Option Agreement			Total
Year ended December 31, 2013:
Balance as of January 1, 2013	$	(2,379	)	$	(18,692	)	$	(1,480	)	$	(22,551	)
Total gains or losses (realized/unrealized):
Included in net income	—			—			—			—
Included in other comprehensive income	—			—			—			—
Included in regulatory assets/liabilities (1)	2,298			1,017			705			4,020
Purchases	—			—			—			—
Issuance	—			—			—			—
Settlements	(1,138		)	3,234			—			2,096
Transfers to/from other categories	—			—			—			—
Ending balance as of December 31, 2013	$	(1,219	)	$	(14,441	)	$	(775	)	$	(16,435	)
Year ended December 31, 2012:
Balance as of January 1, 2012	$	(1,688	)	$	(9,910	)	$	(1,260	)	$	(12,858	)
Total gains or losses (realized/unrealized):
Included in net income	—			—			—			—
Included in other comprehensive income	—			—			—			—
Included in regulatory assets/liabilities (1)	343			(15,236		)	(220		)	(15,113		)
Purchases	—			—			—			—
Issuance	—			—			—			—
Settlements	(1,034		)	6,454			—			5,420
Transfers from other categories	—			—			—			—
Ending balance as of December 31, 2012	$	(2,379	)	$	(18,692	)	$	(1,480	)	$	(22,551	)

	Natural Gas Exchange Agreement			Power Exchange Agreement			Power Option Agreement			Total
Year ended December 31, 2011:
Balance as of January 1, 2011	$	—		$	15,793		$	(2,334	)	$	13,459
Total gains or losses (realized/unrealized):
Included in net income	—			—			—			—
Included in other comprehensive income	—			—			—			—
Included in regulatory assets/liabilities (1)	2,621			(28,571		)	1,074			(24,876		)
Purchases	—			—			—			—
Issuance	—			—			—			—
Settlements	95			2,868			—			2,963
Transfers from other categories (2)	(4,404		)	—			—			(4,404		)
Ending balance as of December 31, 2011	$	(1,688	)	$	(9,910	)	$	(1,260	)	$	(12,858	)

(1) The UTC and the IPUC issued accounting orders authorizing Avista Corp. to offset commodity derivative assets or liabilities with a regulatory asset or liability. This accounting treatment is intended to defer the recognition of mark-to-market gains and losses on energy commodity transactions until the period of delivery. The orders provide for Avista Corp. to not recognize the unrealized gain or loss on utility derivative commodity instruments in the Consolidated Statements of Income. Realized gains or losses are recognized in the period of delivery, subject to approval for recovery through retail rates. Realized gains and losses, subject to regulatory approval, result in adjustments to retail rates through purchased gas cost adjustments, the ERM in Washington, the PCA mechanism in Idaho, and periodic general rates cases.

(2) A derivative contract was reclassified from Level 2 to Level 3 during 2011 due to a particular unobservable input becoming more significant to the fair value measurement. There were not any reclassifications between Level 1 and Level 2. The Company's policy is to reclassify identified items as of the end of the reporting period.