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Associated Press
19-05-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
Georgia Power agrees to hold rates steady, but that doesn't include hurricane recovery costs
ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia Power Co. announced on Monday that it has agreed to a plan with regulatory staff to hold base power rates steady through the end of 2028, although customer bills could still rise in 2026 or later because of the costs of rebuilding from Hurricane Helene and buying natural gas and coal. The five elected members of the Public Service Commission are scheduled to vote on the plan by July 1, according to a stock market filing. The commissioners, all Republicans, could reject or alter the plan, but negotiated agreements with staff historically have been very influential with commissioners. John Kraft, a spokesperson for Georgia Power, said holding rates steady is a benefit 'of the extraordinary economic growth taking place in our state.' 'This stipulated agreement helps balance the affordability needs of our customers while ensuring Georgia Power remains equipped to continue its support of our state's incredible growth – which is good for all of our stakeholders,' Kraft said in a statement. An agreement would allow Commissioners Fitz Johnson and Tim Echols to seek reelection this year without the threat of a rate increase hanging over their campaigns. Echols faces Republican challenger Lee Muns in a June 17 primary, with Democrat Alicia Johnson awaiting the GOP nominee in November. Democrats Daniel Blackman, Peter Hubbard, Robert Jones and Keisha Sean Waites are vying in the primary to face Fitz Johnson in the general election. Georgia Power is the state's only privately owned electrical utility, serving 2.3 million customers statewide. Last year, Georgia Power collected $11.3 billion in revenue and contributed $2.5 billion in profit to its parent, Atlanta-based Southern Co. The company predicts rapidly increasing demand from computer data centers. Georgia Power has said regular customers won't pay for power plants and transmission lines needed to electrify data centers, a pledge now backed up by commission rules. The company has said other customers would see 'downward pressure' on rates because of data centers. Jennifer Whitfield, a senior attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center, predicts customer bills will rise in 2026. That's because Monday's agreement calls for Georgia Power to file a separate plan next year to charge for $800 million in reconstruction costs after Helene. Whitfield also said Georgia Power might seek to charge more to pay for natural gas and coal to generate electricity. 'For the last year and a half, we've been promised that data centers coming to Georgia were going to put a downward pressure on rates. And we imagined that downward pressure would apply to these increases for things like a billion-plus dollars of storm costs,' Whitfield said. 'But now, the downward pressure has dissolved. There is no downward pressure.' Customers have seen bills rise sharply in recent years because of higher natural gas costs, construction projects including two new nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle near Augusta, and other factors. A typical Georgia Power residential customer now pays more than $175 a month, including taxes. Liz Coyle, the executive director of consumer group Georgia Watch, said political reality dictates a freeze. 'I think the reasons more than anything have to do with the company's awareness that their customers and members of the legislature are alarmed about the potential for another rate increase while customers are still reeling,' Coyle said. The deal comes even as commissioners are still considering Georgia Power's three-year plan to generate enough electricity to meet the state's needs. Commissioners approved a mid-cycle rewrite of the current plan because of predictions for increased demand. Typically, a rate plan is approved after that integrated resource plan, ensuring the utility can pay for improvements. But Georgia Power and regulators previously extended a rate plan from 2016 to 2019. One thing the proposal would do is bolster the likelihood that Georgia Power will keep earning high profits. Under Georgia's regulatory system, the company earns a return on the money it invests. Georgia Power earns one of the highest rates of return in the country, set between 9.5% and 11.9%. Under the proposal, the utility could recoup up to $250 million in costs it would otherwise defer if its return falls below 10.5%. That makes it unlikely returns would fall below that level.
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Georgia Power agrees to freeze base rates through 2028
The Georgia Public Service Commission and Georgia Power reached a tentative agreement Monday to keep rates frozen for the next three years. The commission has to vote on it to finalize the agreement. If it passes, the base level of your power bills will not go up until 2028. In a statement shared with Channel 2 Action News, a Georgia Power spokesman said the company remained committed to giving their customers clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] 'We are well-positioned to balance mutual benefits that are available as a result of the extraordinary economic growth taking place in our state,' John Kraft, at Georgia Power, said in part. 'This stipulated agreement helps balance the affordability needs of our customers while ensuring Georgia Power remains equipped to continue its support of our state's incredible growth – which is good for all of our stakeholders.' Similarly, the Georgia Public Service Commission said that while the rate case in question was supposed to include the potential recovery of costs for damage from Hurricane Helene, that portion of the process has been delayed until 2026. TRENDING STORIES: Cubs orphaned after someone kills mother bear in north GA mountains Body recovered at Lake Lanier confirmed as missing kayaker Dustin Valencia GA leaders send support, prayers to former Pres. Joe Biden after his cancer diagnosis The PSC is currently auditing Georgia Power's storm damage expenses ahead of that stage of negotiations. 'This is a very big deal,' PSC Chairman Jason Shaw said in a statement. 'Energy customers have seen unprecedented inflation in the energy sector across the U.S. My fellow Commissioners and I urged staff and Georgia Power to come to some agreement where base rates would not increase. This is nothing but good news for Georgia Power ratepayers. I look forward to delving into the details of this agreement as we conduct our public hearings.' While Georgia Power and the PSC commentary was positive about the new agreement regarding a power rate freeze for the next three years, the Southern Environmental Law Center took issue with the agreement being reached behind closed doors and shutting out residents, business owners and other advocates from the public process. 'In the agreement, Georgia Power claimed 'rates' will not 'be adjusted,' and yet rising fossil fuel costs (passed through directly to billpayers) and recovery costs from Hurricane Helene, guarantee residential and small business customers' bills will climb as early as May of next year,' SELC said. Additionally, the nonprofit said the 'behind closed doors' agreement was not open and transparent as Georgia Power had previously promised, regarding Hurricane Helene costs and data center allocations. 'Commission staff has given away our hard-fought bill relief from data centers. Make no mistake: Bills for residential and small business customers will rise under this agreement,' Jennifer Whitfield, a senior attorney in SELC's Georgia office said in a statement. The agreement also touches on a growing source of large-load customers, data centers. It includes provisions to make sure they cover their costs and protect other customers from these costs. A rule developed earlier this year makes data centers pay a different rate from other customers. Any customers using more than 100 megawatts of energy can be billed beyond the standards of other customers in a bid to 'address risks associated with these large-load users.' Responding to the claims of a lack of transparency, Kraft said Georgia Power continued to work on keeping their energy products reliable and affordable for their customers. 'This stipulated agreement means no base rate increases for three years – that's great news for every customer,' Kraft told Channel 2 Action News. 'Reaching this agreement is just the start of an open and transparent process, leading up to a vote by the Georgia PSC, which will include opportunities for comment and input from intervenors and the public.' A schedule for public hearings on the agreement, which are required to be held before a vote by the five members of the PSC, will be discussed at Tuesdays commission meeting. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
