Appalachian Power and Wheeling Power Companies have refiled a base rate review application with the Public Service Commission (PSC) of West Virginia, seeking adjustments to their non-fuel base rates. The companies have included two alternative proposals aimed at reducing the immediate impact on customers and providing longer-term rate stability.
The initial proposal requests an annual revenue increase of approximately $250.5 million, translating to a 14.12% rate increase. For a typical residential customer using 1,000 kilowatt-hours per month, this would mean a monthly bill increase of roughly 13.54%, or an additional $23.74.
However, the companies also proposed an alternative option involving “securitization” to lessen the impact. Under this plan, the monthly bill for residential customers using the same amount of electricity would increase by only 3.8%, or $6.72. This approach spreads out the costs over a longer period to mitigate immediate financial strain.
Additionally, the companies have introduced a new Electricity Rate Stabilization (ERS) mechanism. If approved, the ERS would cap future base rate increases at around 3% per year, providing more predictable rates and reducing the need for frequent rate adjustments. This mechanism, in combination with the securitization plan, would result in a smaller revenue increase of about $75 million instead of $250.5 million, thus reducing the financial impact on customers by around 70%.
These proposals reflect the companies’ response to rising operational costs, inflation, and ongoing investments in infrastructure upgrades. The PSC is expected to review these requests and determine whether they will approve the proposed adjustments.
For more information on the proposed changes and how they might affect different customer classes, please visit the company’s resource page at AppalachianPower.com/WVRateReview.
