EVANSVILLE – Evansville-area residents’ electricity bills could increase yet again thanks to multiple cases waiting for state approval.
One hike could happen relatively soon, while others may not land on your bill until 2024.
When could my bills go up?
CenterPoint filed two petitions with the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission in a span of eight days.
The first, submitted to the IURC on May 16, asked the IURC for a fuel cost adjustment, allowing them to collect more from customers to offset higher energy prices. The surges would take place in August, September and October.
In the second – a five-year-plan to improve infrastructure and “modernize” part of the grid – “no increase is expected until November 2024,” CenterPoint spokeswoman Erin Merris wrote in a news release.
How much would they go up?
For what CenterPoint considers an average electric customer – someone who uses around 1,000 kilowatt hours per month – a monthly bill could go up by more than $11, according to testimony filed with the IURC from Ryan Wilhelmus, CenterPoint’s manager of regulatory and rates.
The case’s “verified petition,” however, states an average bill would “include an incremental fuel cost charge of $12.69.”
The increase in the second case would be much lower, according to the news release. CenterPoint puts that right at $3 a month.
Are there any other increases possible?
Yes. Last year, despite public outcry and a suggestion from the Office of Utility Consumer Counselor that CenterPoint seek alternative solutions, the IURC approved CenterPoint’s request to build natural gas combustion turbines to replace the A.B. Brown coal plant in Posey County.
For that project, CenterPoint has estimated that the increase for the average customer would hover around $10 a month.
The utility has said rate hikes in that case will not come until the rate review at the end of this year.
More:CenterPoint customers paid more for electricity than anyone in Indiana. Here’s how much
Would my natural gas bill be affected?
According to both petitions, the increases would only affect the electricity side of your bill.
Do Evansville-area CenterPoint customers still pay the highest electric rates in the state?
Yes. According to the IURC’s 2022 electric bill survey, CenterPoint charged the highest rates in Indiana yet again – a title they’ve held since 2011.
The survey found that the average CenterPoint customer paid $168.47 for 1,000 kilowatt hours. That’s only $7 a month more than the closest competitor – Duke Energy – but almost twice as much as the cheapest utility listed: Tipton Municipal Electric, whose customers shelled out $89.86 on average.
CenterPoint’s monthly bill for 1,000 kilowatt hours was about $40 more than the average across Indiana, the survey found.
Read More: Here are the ways Evansville residents’ electric bills could increase