Tag: Wheeling Power

PSC Approves $89 Million Rate Increase For Appalachian Power

The companies had sought to recover $642 million. The commission deferred a decision on the remaining balance.

The West Virginia Public Service Commission (PSC) has approved a partial rate increase for Appalachian Power customers.

On Wednesday, the PSC approved nearly $89 million in fuel costs for Appalachian Power and Wheeling Power, to be paid for by electricity users.

The companies had sought to recover $642 million. The commission deferred a decision on the remaining balance.

The under-recovery of fuel costs goes back to 2021, when electricity demand surged following the COVID-19 lock downs. The price of coal and natural gas spiked, and Appalachian Power found itself running low on coal supplies at its three West Virginia power plants.

The full $642 million would have cost the average residential user almost $20 a month. The $89 million will increase monthly bills by closer to $5.

The PSC held multiple days of hearings in Charleston last week on the matter, in addition to four public comment hearings statewide over the summer.

Appalachian Power is an underwriter of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

Kentucky Power Customers Pay More Than Neighbors And West Virginia

Electricity from Kentucky Power is $25 higher than Wheeling Power’s West Virginia average monthly bill of $162.43. Electricity for both Wheeling Power and Kentucky Power is generated by the Mitchell Plant in Moundsville.

Kentucky Power customers pay higher average monthly bills than Wheeling Power customers, even though their power comes from the same plant.

The average monthly residential bill for Kentucky Power customers is $187.56. That’s higher than any of the state’s investor-owned or municipal power companies, or rural electric cooperatives, according to the Energy and Environment Cabinet’s Kentucky Energy Profile.

It’s $50 more than Kentucky Utilities and $74 higher than Louisville Gas & Electric.

It’s $25 higher than Wheeling Power’s West Virginia average monthly bill of $162.43. Electricity for both Wheeling Power and Kentucky Power is generated by the Mitchell Plant in Moundsville.

Kentucky Power and Wheeling Power are owned by American Electric Power, based in Columbus, Ohio.

In late 2021, AEP moved to sell Kentucky Power to Algonquin Power, a Canadian company. Late last year, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission rejected the sale.

Kentucky Power serves 165,000 customers in part or all of 20 eastern Kentucky counties.

The Mitchell Plant will not produce electricity for Kentucky Power past 2028. That’s because utility regulators in each state made conflicting decisions on whether to upgrade Mitchell to operate longer. West Virginia ratepayers will pay for those upgrades. Kentucky’s will not.

Daniel Cameron, Kentucky’s Attorney General and Republican nominee for governor, supported the Kentucky Public Service Commission’s decision to reject the upgrades to the Mitchell plant.

AEP Calls Off Sale Of Kentucky Power To Algonquin Power

AEP had reached an agreement in late 2021 to sell Kentucky Power to Algonquin Power, based in Canada, for $2.85 billion.

American Electric Power has called off the sale of its Kentucky Power subsidiary.

AEP had reached an agreement in late 2021 to sell Kentucky Power to Algonquin Power, based in Canada, for nearly $3 billion.

Kentucky Power serves 165,000 customers in 20 Eastern Kentucky counties. The power is generated by the Mitchell plant in Moundsville, West Virginia. Kentucky Power and Wheeling Power own the plant jointly.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission denied approval of the sale in December.

“We are committed to our operations in Kentucky,” AEP spokeswoman Tammy Ridout said in a statement. “We have refocused our efforts on partnering with key stakeholders in Eastern Kentucky to bring opportunities to the region and support the communities we serve.”

When the Mitchell plant required tens of millions of dollars in wastewater treatment upgrades, West Virginia regulators approved the work, but Kentucky’s did not.

The upgrades were necessary to keep the plant operating beyond 2028.

Because of the conflicting decisions between the two states, Kentucky Power will not receive electricity from the plant after 2028, Ridout said.

“The existing operating agreement remains in place, and the companies will work on how to best transition ownership,” she said.

Federal Regulators Block Sale Of Kentucky Power To Algonquin

Kentucky Power and Wheeling Power each own half of the Mitchell power plant in the Northern Panhandle.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Thursday denied the sale of Kentucky Power to Algonquin Power. The five-member commission said the companies had not demonstrated the deal would not have an adverse impact on rates.

Kentucky Power and Wheeling Power each own half of the Mitchell power plant in the Northern Panhandle.

Last year, West Virginia regulators approved a wastewater treatment upgrade that would keep the plant in operation past 2028. Kentucky regulators, however, did not.

Following those conflicting decisions, parent company American Electric Power announced the sale of Kentucky Power to Algonquin.

Commissioner Willie Phillips, in a concurring statement, said he would have preferred that FERC conditionally approve the sale. He noted that FERC rarely denies such applications.

He also noted that the Kentucky Public Service Commission, in approving the deal in May, had required a $30 million payment to ratepayers.

Phillips was appointed to FERC by President Joe Biden.

Kentucky Power, headquartered in Ashland, has 165,000 customers in 20 eastern Kentucky counties.

In a statement, Tammy Ridout, an AEP spokeswoman, said the company was “disappointed.”

“We are thoroughly reviewing the order and are working,” she said, “to determine the best path forward to securing FERC’s approval of the transaction.”

Appalachian Power Can't Cut Tree-Trimming Budget, PSC Rules

In April, Appalachian Power and Wheeling Power had asked the PSC to approve its plan to reduce the amount of money it spends to manage trees near power lines by $16 million.

The West Virginia Public Service Commission has rejected a proposal by Appalachian Power to cut its vegetation management budget.

In April, Appalachian Power and Wheeling Power had asked the PSC to approve its plan to reduce the amount of money it spends to manage trees near power lines by $16 million.

That would have lowered monthly utility bills for about 500,000 customers by $2.

Last week, the commission denied the request, citing concerns about reliability.

The company has about 20,000 miles of transmission lines in West Virginia.

The PSC will hear another Appalachian Power case in October. The company is asking for a $297 million rate increase to offset the higher cost of coal and natural gas.

Residents and local governments have filed comments in opposition to the plan.

If the commission approves the request, Appalachian Power and Wheeling Power customers can expect their monthly charges to increase by about $18.

Appalachian Power is an underwriter of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

Power Companies File Settlement Agreement with PSC

Appalachian Power and Wheeling Power have filed a settlement agreement seeking to use tax reform funds to offset fuel and vegetation management costs, allowing customer rates to remain stable for two years.

The companies said in a news release that the agreement was filed Monday with the West Virginia Public Service Commission, which must approve the deal.

The settlement would offset $110 million in costs. The release said without the agreement, rates could have risen by as much as 11 percent.

Appalachian Power and Wheeling Power are units of American Electric Power Co.

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