Tag: Appalachian Power

More Than 50,000 Without Power in West Virginia

 More than 50,000 customers remain without electricity after severe thunderstorms rolled through West Virginia.

Appalachian Power says on its website that nearly 49,000 customers had no service Wednesday across 16 counties in southern West Virginia. That includes nearly 13,000 customers in Cabell County, 8,000 in Wayne County and more than 5,000 each in Kanawha and Logan counties.

FirstEnergy says about 3,200 customers had no service.

The storms Tuesday night brought high wind gusts and lightning but no significant rainfall amounts.

The National Weather Service says more thunderstorms are possible in the state Wednesday.

Group Weighs in on APCo's Bid for W.Va. Power Plant

  West Virginia Citizen Action Group is asking state regulators to postpone a ruling on Appalachian Power’s request to acquire the remaining portion of a coal power plant.

The group said it filed a motion with the Public Service Commission on Monday asking it to order the company to look at buying other power plants instead.

Appalachian Power and Wheeling Power are asking to buy half of the Mitchell coal-fired generating plant in Moundsville.

West Virginia Citizen Action Group wants regulators suspend the case until the companies produce an economic analysis of the cost of purchasing plants for sale by Duke Energy and AES Corporation in Ohio.

The group says the move would protect ratepayers by having the company look at possible less expensive options to the Mitchell plant.

W.Va. Regulators Won't Revisit Felman Power Rate

  State regulators aren’t going to revisit a special electricity rate for an idled manufacturer in Mason County.

The Public Service Commission on Wednesday denied two petitions asking it to reconsider the special rate. The PSC’s order says its April 3 decision will remain in effect.

The special rate plan would enable Felman Production to buy electricity from Appalachian Power at as much as $9 million per year off its full rate. The discounted rate would be calculated each month, based on commodity prices and the costs of raw materials used in production.

Felman has said the plan would allow its silicomanganese plant in New Haven to operate when commodity markets are weak.

The PSC’s Commission Advocate Division and the West Virginia Energy Users Group filed the reconsideration petitions.

Power Crews Ready for Winter Storm

Power crews are moving into the region along with the latest winter storm.In a release, Appalachian Power said nearly 100 contractors and employees moved…

Power crews are moving into the region along with the latest winter storm.

In a release, Appalachian Power said nearly 100 contractors and employees moved into areas expected to experience the most severe effects of the storm.

Phil Wright, Appalachian Power’s vice president of distribution operations said in the release that colder temperatures and a lack of wind are expected to work in the power company’s favor to limit wide-spread outages.

Wright said about 32 contractors will be staged in Princeton, strategically located to respond where needed on Thursday. Sixty line mechanics are in the Roanoke area, where some of the heaviest snow is predicted.

If the additional help is not needed once the storm passes,extra crews will remain on standby to assist other utilities.

Preparing for an outage

AEP says customers should charge cell phones and have a mobile charger for their automobiles.

Customers can prepare for outages by assembling an emergency kit to include:

  • flashlights
  • fresh batteries
  • battery-powered radios or televisions
  • candles, matches, or lighters
  • water for drinking and cooking
  • portable heater (oil or gas)
  • camping equipment (sleeping bags, camp stoves, lanterns)
  • canned goods and a manual can opener
  • manufacturers’ instructions for power-operated equipment such as the garage door

Appalachian Power Customers Warned of Scam

Appalachian Power says small business owners are the target of a scam seeking to extort cash.

The power company says reports of the scam are coming from its West Virginia customers, but it says its customers in Virginia and Tennessee are also likely to be targeted.

The scam works this way:

  • Customers are receiving calls from someone purporting to represent the company and claiming that check or credit card payments are no longer being accepted. Appalachian Power says that is not the case.
  • The caller tells customers that their payments have been returned, they owe $1,000 and that it must be paid immediately with a prepaid credit card.

A spokesman for Appalachian Power says the company never demands payment in that matter.

Storm Knocks Out Power to 17,000 West Virginians

A winter storm has knocked out electricity for about 17,000 Appalachian Power customers in West Virginia.
 
     The utility’s website shows most of the outages are in southern West Virginia. As of 8:25 a.m. Monday, there are 7,900 outages in Mercer County and more than 3,500 in Raleigh County.
 
     Smaller outages have occurred in Cabell, Fayette, Greenbrier, McDowell, Summers and Wyoming counties.
 
     Mon Power reports scattered outages in northern West Virginia.

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