Alabama Power announces rate increase starting on next month's bills

By John Underwood
Business Editor
john@gulfcoastmedia.com
Posted 7/27/22

MOBILE — Because of the rising cost of fuel, Alabama Power customers will see an increase in their power bills beginning next month."Alabama Power has worked hard to keep the cost of …

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Alabama Power announces rate increase starting on next month's bills

Posted

MOBILE — Because of the rising cost of fuel, Alabama Power customers will see an increase in their power bills beginning next month.

"Alabama Power has worked hard to keep the cost of electricity as low as possible," said Beth Thomas, external affairs manager with Alabama Power. "However, the rising cost of fuel has necessitated an adjustment to our rate."

Alabama Power serves about 6,000 customers in Baldwin County, Thomas said, primarily in Bay Minette and the surrounding areas.

Base cost for residential customers is $14.50 per month, plus charges per kilowatt hour with an average cost per customer of about $120 per month, Thomas said.

The increase will raise the cost for residential customers about 5%, or about $6 per month.

"We're doing everything we can to help our customers who need assistance with their power bills," Thomas said. "We're here to help customers struggling to pay their bills. To discuss options, they can chat with us online, give us a call or visit us in person at one of our offices."

Baldwin County's largest provider of electricity, Baldwin EMC, has implemented a Power Cost Adjustment (PCA) to offset the rising costs of fuel, said Mark Ingram, vice president of corporate services and public relations.

In May, the Board voted to increase its PCA $3 per month to offset the rising cost of fuel. Base cost for Baldwin EMC customers is $37.95 per month, which has not increased since 2017, Ingram said.
Baldwin EMC is a member-owned cooperative with more than 80,000 members throughout Baldwin County.

Riviera Utilities, which serves around 41,000 customers in the Foley and Daphne areas, has not seen a rate increase since January of 2016, according to rivierautilities.com. The company charges a base fee of $20 per month, plus 10.1 cents per kilowatt hour.

Fairhope Utilities charges $11.10 per month, plus charges per kilowatt hour.

Nationally rates increased from 13.76 cents per kilowatt hour in April 2021 to 14.77 cents per kilowatt hour in April 2022, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Statewide, electrical rates increased 3.7 % from April 2021 to April 2022, averaging 14.24 cents per kilowatt hour, up from 13.73 cents a year ago.

Throughout the East South-Central region, rates have also increased, up from 12.35 cents per kilowatt hour in 2021 to 12.87 cents per kilowatt hour in 2022.

Mississippi increased from 12.13 cents per kilowatt hour to 13.14 cents per kilowatt hour; Kentucky's rates increased from 12.09 cents per kilowatt hour to 12.63 cents per kilowatt hour, while Tennessee increased from 11.60 cents per kilowatt hour to 11.94 cents per kilowatt hour.