PSNH Requests Rate Reductions
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
PSNH Requests Rate Reductions
July Rates Estimate Filed
MANCHESTER, N.H., May 2, 2013 — Public Service of New Hampshire customers are expected to see a reduction in rates beginning July 1st. As part of preliminary rate forecasts filed this week with State regulators, the company anticipates an overall decrease in rates for all customers.
Customers purchasing energy from PSNH would see an average overall rate reduction of about 4.3 percent, if the figures in the preliminary filings go into effect. Customers purchasing energy from a supplier other than PSNH would see an average overall rate reduction of about 2.7 percent on the PSNH side of their monthly bill.
The company is requesting an Energy Service rate reduction to 8.98 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) from the current 9.54 cents/kWh, a decrease in the Stranded Cost Recovery Charge, and an increase in the Distribution Charge. The rate forecasts will be updated with then-current numbers in future filings to the NH Public Utilities Commission, which is expected to hold hearings in the month of June.
The Energy Service Charge is expected to be reduced July 1st as a result of modifications imposed by the Public Utilities Commission to the state’s Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) and a change by the Legislature regarding the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). The changes will result in some lower RPS costs and RGGI-related refunds to customers. In addition, the continued efficient operation of the company’s generators during the 1st quarter of 2013 saved PSNH customers more than $45 million, compared to the market price of energy during the period. The company’s energy rate is set by state regulators at PSNH’s actual cost of producing or purchasing the energy necessary to meet customer demand.
PSNH’s average Stranded Cost Recovery Charge is expected to be cut almost in half as a result of the expiration of some contracts with small, New Hampshire-based independent power producers, as well as the final payoff of bonds purchased 12 years ago as part of the electric utility restructuring settlement between PSNH and the State.
Those reductions are expected to offset an increase in the company’s Distribution Charge that was agreed to as part of an existing rate settlement that is in effect until the middle of 2015. Besides the scheduled adjustment, the company is also asking to increase its Storm Reserve Fund, to cover costs associated with major storms that have occurred since 2011.
Public Service of New Hampshire, a Northeast Utilities company (NYSE:NU), is New Hampshire’s largest electric utility, serving more than 500,000 homes and businesses in 211 cities and towns. For more information, please visit psnh.com or psnhnews.com, and follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
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