ALPENA, MI - A small northern Michigan utility will be required to issue nearly $645,000 in bill credits to customers who went days or weeks without power during a massive ice storm this spring — after initially trying to dodge the requirement by arguing the blitz of ice was an unprecedented “act of God” beyond its control.

Alpena Power Co. must pony up the required credits under a settlement agreement OK’d by state regulators on Friday, Dec. 5, more than eight months after the storm.

Some customers who were left in the dark for almost two weeks could be entitled to at least $400 in credits under state rules requiring for-profit utilities to issue them automatically after extended or repeated outages.

The credits, set at $40 at the time of the storm and since raised to $42 , stack

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