A small bright spot for strapped consumers: Progress Energy plans a bigger rate reduction than originally proposed to account for declining fuel costs.
The Raleigh utility in June announced plans to cut rates about 10 cents a month for the average household starting Dec. 1. But after gathering additional cost information, Progress today filed to reduce rates an additional 24 cents a month.
The net savings, if approved by the N.C. Utilities Commission, would be $4.08 a year. The average monthly bill would drop to $106.44, down from $106.78 now.
Electric utilities are allowed to pass along the cost of coal and other fuel, and adjust them annually. Fuel costs have surged in the past five years, but have fallen recently as recession weakens global demand.
Assistant Business Editor Alan M. Wolf joined the N&O in 1999 covering the business of health care. He became an editor in 2001, and helps oversee the paper's daily business coverage and Sunday Work&Money section. He lives in Clayton with his wife and two children. Reach him at 919-829-4572 or
Comments
What Good News!! (?)
Mon, 08/17/2009 - 15:13 — rlp2451Last year fuel (i.e, the price of a barrel of oil) was $140. This year it's $70. They raised the price last year by 16% on December 1st to recover the high cost of fuel when it went up from $90 in the spring of 2008. Why aren't they lowering it by AT LEAST 16%??
Rate Increases
Mon, 08/17/2009 - 15:24 — MicahWesThe average increase of all NC electricity utilities in their base residential single-phase rate was 63/100 of one cent per kilowatt-hour between April of 08 and April of 09. The average NC rate went from 0.968 to 0.1031 per kilowatt-hour.
Ummm
Mon, 08/17/2009 - 14:04 — MicahWesOur electric rates have hardly gone up in YEARS. Our base rate has only changed a few 100ths of 1 cent. Our kilowatt-hour rate is still 0.1063 per kilowatt-hour July-October and 0.963 per kilowatt-hour November-June. Those are some of the lowest electric rates in the country and world!
Base Rate Illusion
Mon, 08/17/2009 - 15:37 — rlp2451Electric companies always want to tout the fact that "base rates haven't increased over time" but statisitics do not support that. According to the Energy Information Administration, here are the average residential rates for North Carolina from 2000-2009:
2000: 7.97 cents per Kwh
2001: 8.12
2002: 8.19
2003: 8.32
2004: 8.45
2005: 8.65
2006: 9.12
2007: 9.40
2008: 9.69
2009: 11.25
That is a 41% increase in ten years, 16% last year alone.
Progress Energy base
Mon, 08/17/2009 - 16:12 — MicahWesProgress Energy base residential rates are currently .1063 for summer and .963 for winter. Quite a bargain for my household of three. We were also just under 1000 kwh last month with central air and house built in 1925, so our bills are so low that I don't worry about a few pennies. You CAN reduce your bill considerably if you really want to.
You must be another yankee
Mon, 08/17/2009 - 14:12 — TheLibertineYou must be another yankee spreading your bureaucratic garbage. Please go home.
Yankee??
Mon, 08/17/2009 - 17:48 — hoosierhysteriaYou must obviously be an unfortunate Confederate.
?
Mon, 08/17/2009 - 15:16 — MicahWesWhat are you talking about? Ignorant posts such as yours add nothing to the conversation. My post is not garbage, it is merely a statement of irrefutable facts. The information can be found in Progress Energy and Duke Energy Rate Tariffs. The current enegy prices per kilowatt-hour for the US can be found at http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/international/elecprih.html . Current energy prices for all US states and sectors can be found here: http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/epm/table5_6_a.html
I'm afraid this respite will
Mon, 08/17/2009 - 11:58 — TheLibertineI'm afraid this respite will be short lived. Let "Cap & Trade" get passed -- our energy bills will triple or more. Please do enjoy it while it lasts.
Why is this news?
Mon, 08/17/2009 - 11:58 — Brianna_F$4.08 per year? This is NOTHING. It won't even buy two gallons of gas. Do they think they're being generous?
I know our rates have gone up much more than that.