United Illuminating said average residential electric customers will see an increase of about $14 in their monthly bills for six months beginning in January because of increased winter power use that pushes up the market price of natural gas.
UI disclosed the price increase in a filing this week with the Public Utility Regulatory Authority. Eversource said last week that its average monthly residential bill would grow by about $15 for the January to June period for the same reason.
Neither utility profits from the increase. When the state deregulated energy supply in 1998, the electric utilities were required to divest themselves of electric generation facilities and buy power from generators at market prices.
Electric supply prices typically increase in winter when natural gas, which produces about half of New England’s electricity, must be shipped to the region to meet increased demand. The utilities pass their increased costs to customers with approval of PURA.
Both UI and Eversource said the winter price increases are down more than 20 percent from last year’s increase. UI serves 17 towns in Connecticut.
UI president and CEO Frank Reynolds blamed the seasonal increase on New England’s dependence on natural gas as an energy source.
“The over-reliance on natural gas for electricity generation will cause price increases every winter until policymakers take action,” he said.
Regulators slash revenue requests at two CT gas companies, giving customers some relief on bills
Attorney General William Tong, a frequent critic of utility pricing, blasted the seasonal price hike.
“We had terrible news from Eversource on Friday, and now more terrible news from United Illuminating,” Tong said. “It’s the same bad news—another unaffordable increase on top of already unaffordable bills.
“Again, these winter rates are the result of a competitive bidding process. This is pretty much set in stone at this point. We see these fluctuations every year. But that doesn’t make it OK—far from it,” he said.
“Connecticut families need real relief from these unsustainable costs. Everything has to be on the table. My promise is this—I’m going to keep fighting every single day in every single proceeding before the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority,” Tong said.
In other Avangrid news, a divided state utility authority slashed revenues for two state gas companies Monday, giving customers a slight break on bills but drawing a warning that the decisions will lead to more credit downgrades for the industry and an eventual decline in service.
The 2-1 decision by commissioners of the Public Utility Regulatory Authority cut revenues for Connecticut Natural Gas and Southern Connecticut Gas to levels below what they were authorized to collect through rates six and seven years ago, respectively.
The long and complex decisions were being reviewed and it was unclear exactly how much customers of Avangrid subsidiaries Connecticut Natural Gas and Southern Connecticut Gas can expect to save beginning in December.
