CHARLESTON, W.Va., March 2, 2015 – Appalachian Power, along with Wheeling Power, today submitted its annual Expanded Net Energy Cost (ENEC) filing to the W.Va. Public Service Commission (PSC) for reimbursement of past and ongoing costs of fuel (primarily coal) and purchased power.
The companies are requesting a $61.5 million increase in the ENEC to account for the difference between the amount currently being collected and projected expenditures through the next annual filing period. For a residential customer using 1,000 kilowatt-hours per month, the request brings the monthly bill to $98, up 4 percent from the current bill of $94.
Residential Customer Usage and Costs
| Usage in KWH |
Current Rate |
Proposed Rate |
Increase |
% Increase |
| 1,000 |
$94.40 |
$98.24 |
$3.84 |
4% |
| 2,000 |
$177.74 |
$185.43 |
$7.69 |
4.3% |
(Note: current rates corrected from original release.)
If approved, new rates including the ENEC are expected to go into effect July 1. The company also has a request pending before the PSC for an increase in its base rates. A decision in that case is expected by May 26. Appalachian’s total proposed rate remains well below the national average residential price for electricity of $125.30 for 1,000 kilowatt-hours.
The company also filed with the PSC an annual review of its energy efficiency and demand side management programs. In 2014 the company introduced several new programs to help customers reduce their electricity consumption. Those programs have produced a 20 percent increase in energy savings over the previous year. The company reported a total of more than 60,000,000 kilowatt-hours of annual savings for its customers through these programs last year. The company asked the PSC for funding to continue the existing programs and introduce a pilot Volt-VAR Optimization program. Volt-VAR Optimization allows more efficient operation of customer equipment by maintaining voltages closer to the design voltage of that equipment.
Tips for saving energy and information regarding how customers can participate in these energy efficiency programs can be found on Appalachian’s website, www.AppalachianPower.com/save.
* According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, released January 27, 2015
http://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.cfm?t=epmt_5_06_b
Jeri Matheney
Corporate Communications
jhmatheney@aep.com