ATLANTA (AP) – Georgia Power Co. wants to raise customer bills 12% over the next three years to pay for system improvements and higher costs and allow higher profits, the company said Friday in a rate filing with state regulators.
The filing kicks off a rate case before the Georgia Public Service Commission, with the five commissioners likely to vote on the plan in December and new rates taking effect in January. Changes are likely before any vote.
A residential customer who uses 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per month pays Georgia Power an average of $128 a month now, Chief Financial Officer Aaron Abramovitz said Friday. Under the plan, that would rise by $14.32 in 2023, reaching a total of $16.29 over the three-year period.
But those aren’t the only price increases Georgia Power’s 2.3 million customers could face next year. The Public Service Commission has already approved plans for the company to increase rates by $3.78 a month as soon as the first of two new nuclear units being built at Plant Vogtle come on line.
The company also will file next year to recover the cost of the coal and natural gas it uses to fuel its power plants, and Georgia Power President and CEO Chris Womack acknowledged Friday that the company is likely to file in February 2023 to raise bills to pay more for fuel, but pledged to work with commissioners to “mitigate and minimize the impact to our customers.”