CHARLESTON, W.Va. The Public Service Commission has suspended the proposed rate increase filed by Mon Power and Potomac Edison until March of 2024.
First Energy spokesman Todd Meyers released the following statement, describing the suspension as “routine” while PSC members get more information about the proposal.
“The PSC suspension of the proposed rate increase is standard operating procedure in a utility base rate review. The statute provides a 30-day time period for a decision, unless the Commission wants to deliberate and study a proposal for longer, in which case they “suspend” the proposal and begin a 270-day clock for a deeper look.”
The PSC also received petitions to intervene from West Virginia Community Advancement and Development, West Virginia Energy Users Group, Longview Power, Citizens Action Group, Solar United Neighbors, and Energy Efficient West Virginia.
The PSC will begin evidentiary hearings on January 24, 2024, in Charleston. First Energy has also been asked to work with other entities on the review. A formal schedule will be released on July 7.
Since the last rate review in 2014, Mon Power and Potomac Edison have increased their customer base by about 25,000 and invested about $1 billion in their systems.
If the rate increase is approved, a residential customer using 1,000 kilowatt hours per month would have a 15 percent increase in their bill, or about $18.07 per month. In a press release, company officials said, “If approved, Mon Power and Potomac Edison customers would continue to pay the
lowest electric rates among West Virginia’s investor-owned regulated electric companies.”