The Oklahoma Corporation Commission meets Tuesday and will consider a request for a public hearing on Empire District Electric Co.’s request for a $2.3 million rate increase over three years.
As the Journal Record reported, the request is opposed by the Oklahoma Industrial Energy Consumers. It filed testimony with the OCC opposing the request.
The rate case, filed in March, cites the need to recoup costs of $883 million in capital investments since 2011 as the reason for the increase. The investments included projects to improve reliability, upgrade technology and meet requirements mandated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The proposed rates also include lower corporate tax rates included in the Tax Cuts and Job Act of 2017 and the discontinuation of the Environmental Collection Rider, the mechanism Empire is using to recoup investments in the Asbury Power Plant and Riverton Combined Cycle.
The rider will be rolled into base rates when the rate increase takes effect.
Empire, a subsidiary of Liberty Utilities, serves 4,647 customers in northeast Oklahoma. If approved, the average residential customer’s monthly bill would increase by $7.44 in 2019, $8.10 in 2020 and $5.69 in 2021.
The company would offer bill relief to low-income customers at a monthly rate of $2.56 in 2019, $1.90 in 2020 and $4.31 in 2021.
The company is hoping to have the rate increase approved in time for implementation in fall this year, according to its website.
OIEC argued in testimony the hike would increase commercial and industrial customer rates by 20% and recommended $1.4 million in adjustments to the company’s request to keep rates competitive.
The group’s recommendations include lowering the requested rates to “reasonable cost of capital,” lower depreciation rates than the company claimed, more “reasonable levels” of expenses and reductions resulting from tax reform, according to a press release.
OIEC General Counsel Tom Schroedter said the increase is “alarming” and “neither justified nor appropriate.”
Quapaw Nation Chairman John Berrey, an OIEC member, said in the press release the company is seeking “an excessive rate of return” for investors at consumers’ expense.
“On behalf of the Quapaw Nation and all other customers of Empire Electric, I ask that the Commission review and adopt OIEC’s recommendations to protect the residents of Northeastern Oklahoma against this excessive grab for unfair profits,” Berrey said in the release.
Empire Electric could not be reached for comment.