I&M modifies hike proposal

Indiana Michigan Power is revamping its rate increase proposal after reaching a settlement agreement with a number of consumer and environmental groups and the Office of Utility Consumer Counselor.

The revised proposal, which is still subject to approval by the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission, calls for an increase of 7.26 percent, which would amount to a monthly increase of $9.41 per month for a typical residential customer using 1,000 kilowatt hours. That includes the proposed customer charge portion of the bill, which would be $10.50 per month. I&M said that is the second-lowest among Indiana’s major electric utilities.

The new rates would provide I&M with $96.8 million in additional revenue which it sought for its Building the Future plans. Those plans are related to infrastructure improvements which the utility said will reduce outages.

The settlement agreement also calls for I&M to establish new programs to help low-income customers and offer economic development incentives directly to communities.

I&M representatives said the plan would also eliminate the fee for charging a bill payment on a credit card.

The utility will also provide a total of $950,000 to help low-income customers and create a $700,000 Economic Impact Grant Program to help support “qualified economic development projects.”

If approved by the IURC, the new rates would be phased in. They would become partially effective in July and fully effective early in 2019.



Assets grow

Total assets for CrossRoads Financial Federal Credit Union increased 7.1 percent in 2017 over the prior year, chairman and chief executive officer Janet Bantz reported to members recently.

Bantz told the annual meeting of the credit union that year-end assets were $54,708,689. Total loans at year-end were $30,424,501. Total deposits increased in 2017 to $49,112,635.

Bantz said membership at CrossRoads now totals 9,174.

Craig Faulkner and board chairman Dale Pearson were elected to additional three-year terms on the board of directors.

The credit union recognized Beverly Huntsman for 20 years of service. Katrina Morehous and Jeff Whetstone were recognized for 10 years ofd service.

Crossroads was federally chartered in 1950 and operates two offices in Portland, one in Dunkirk and one in Winchester.



Earnings up

Indian auto component supplier Motherson Sumi Systems on Tuesday reported a 2.6-percent rise in consolidated net profit for the quarter ending December, Nekkei Asian Review reported.

Net profit for the quarter was 5.62 billion rupees ($87.5 million).

Motherson Sumi is the parent company of MSSL Wiring Systems in Portland.

The company said its operations generated nearly 144 billion rupees of total revenue for the third quarter of the fiscal year through March, compared with about 108 billion rupees for the same quarter a year earlier. Revenue outside India increased 38 percent, while the domestic figure climbed 20 percent.

Total quarterly expenses, meanwhile, rose to 136.35 billion rupees, up from 100.69 billion rupees a year earlier. Net profit attributable to owners dropped 12.3 percent to 3.64 billion rupees.

The company makes wiring harnesses at its Portland plant and also produces passenger car mirrors, plastic components, interior modules and trims, and bumpers.

"Customer confidence remains high, and with new plants being commissioned or underway, the outlook remains positive," Chairman Vivek Chaand Sehgal said in a prepared statement.

Based in Noida, near the capital of New Delhi, MSSL was established as a joint venture with Japan's Sumitomo Wiring Systems in 1986. As a global supplier to auto brands such as Daimler, Ford, Honda, Suzuki, Tata and Toyota, MSSL is a 100 percent original equipment manufacturer not tied to any single client. The Samvardhana Motherson Group has over 230 manufacturing facilities across 37 countries and employs more than 100,000 people.



Tyson dividend

The board of directors of Tyson Foods Inc., parent company of Tyson Mexican Original, declared a quarterly dividend of 30 cents per share on Class A common stock and 27 cents per share on Class B common stock, payable on June 15 to shareholders of record at the close of business on June 1. Meanwhile, The Jackson Sun reported this week that a Tyson subsidiary had signed a definitive agreement to purchase three commercial grain elevators in western Tennessee from the Grain Group of The Andersons Inc.

The elevators are located in Dyer, Humboldt and Kenton, and will support Tyson Foods’ existing operations in Union City, as well as its planned chicken complex in Humboldt, the newspaper reported.

"This project will help secure vital inputs for us, and position us to grow and support our customers," Doug Ramsey, group president of poultry for Tyson Foods, said in a press release. "We look forward to creating more direct relationships with the grain producers in the area."

The transaction is expected to close in March, and terms of the agreement are not being disclosed. It is expected that about 20 employees of The Andersons will become employees of Tyson Foods. No disruption to existing contracts with area farmers is expected.

The Andersons operates a grain terminal just outside of Dunkirk.



Happy healthy?

National Public Radio reported this week that by the end of 2022, at least 50 percent or more of the kids meal options listed on menus will meet new global Happy Meal nutrition criteria.

That means meals will have 600 calories or less, no more than 10 percent of calories from saturated fat, no more than 650 mg sodium and no more than 10 percent of calories from added sugar.

“In many cases, these goals represent small tweaks,” NPR said. “For instance, to reduce sugar, McDonald's locations in the U.S. have already switched to organic apple juice that is lower in sugar and calories. Now, the company plans to reformulate chocolate milk to a lower-sugar version. In addition, they will downsize the size of the fries served with the six-piece Chicken McNugget Happy Meal.”

In a press release, the American Heart Association applauded McDonald's planned changes. "This is an important step in the right direction and we look forward to seeing how today's announcement will lead to kids eating fewer calories and less sugar, saturated fat and sodium," the group's CEO, Nancy Brown, said.



Fewer managers

Walmart is restructuring store management positions at some of its 4,700 stores, according to news reports.

The giant retailer is cutting two department manager positions at some of its lower volume stores, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The hourly positions oversee cell phone departments and online grocery pickup areas, a Walmart statement said.

Another position, known as front-end zone supervisors, has also been eliminated across Walmart stores.

Many of the workers impacted by the cuts will be placed in other jobs at Walmart, including other management positions, the company said.