Bond payments have helped JEA decrease its debt to a level it hasn’t experienced since 2007.
The JEA board of directors was informed Tuesday at its monthly board meeting that the authority’s combined outstanding debt has dipped from $6.3 billion in September 2011 to $5.9 billion in July 2012.
JEA’s debt level hasn’t been below $6 billion since 2007.
“It’s the first time our debt has dropped below $6 billion in a while. We are moving in the right direction,” said Ashton Hudson, JEA board chairman.
The debt was split between the electric and water/sewer systems.
The electric system debt is slightly below $4 billion, and the decrease JEA realized was attributed primarily to a $257 million Oct. 1 bond principal payment. The water/sewer system debt is slightly under $2 billion with a $76 million decrease attributed to an Oct. 1 bond principal payment and a November 2011 early bond redemption.
The board also was updated on the Total Water Management Plan, which included inserting a 6,700-foot-long pipeline under the St. Johns River to connect water systems on the south and north banks near the Mathews Bridge.
JEA Chief Operating Officer James Chansler told the board the pipeline had been successfully installed and the project was moving forward.
“This project was unfathomable a few years ago, but the technology and equipment have made it possible. It’s one of the biggest projects that we’ve done,” said Chansler.
JEA developed the plan to balance the water withdrawal between the two systems and by doing so protect the Floridan aquifer from saltwater intrusion.
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