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Gulf Power Bills Headed Up
November 5, 2013
Customers of three of the state’s largest utilities — including Gulf Power — will see their monthly electric bills increase in 2014, after regulators Monday approved charges for expenses such as power-plant fuel.
Residential customers of Gulf Power Co. who use 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity a month will see their bills jump in January from $118.88 to $127.94. an increase of $9.06 per month. Utilities typically point to 1,000 kilowatt hours as a benchmark, though residential use varies widely and business customers are billed differently.
By Florida statute and established Public Service Commission policy, electric utilities may recover certain expenses from customers through cost recovery charges adjusted annually by the PSC. Cost recovery is allowed on fuel and purchased power, capacity , conservation, and environmental requirements. Utilities may not, however, earn a profit on fuel charges.
Most of the increases approved Monday by the PSC are related to fuel and are included in the fuel charge on customers’ bills.
Comments
17 Responses to “Gulf Power Bills Headed Up”
Here’s the big questions. LOOK ON YOUR BILL UNDER THE FUEL SOURCES. Gulp is using 24.6% coal, 22% gas…and are yall ready for this…53% purchased power from other companies…Guess who those companies are…Sister companies under the Southern Company, exp Alabama Power. How is it Alabama Power can make enough power to sell some to Gulp Power but Gulp can’t make enough power to supply 400,000 customers. Heck after all these years of rate increases for infrastructure one would think Gulp would be able to produce enough power to sell some to AP, but then again maybe this is all by design. I wonder what rate GP pays AP for the power GP then turns around and sells us? Hummmmm…That little $10 increase they just passed across an average of 400,000 customers just generated Gulp almost $50,000,000 over the next year (and this is a low number)…In 10 years that will be $500,000,000…I wonder if they will build a plant with that that runs on natural gas since they could just pump it out of the gulf 20 miles down the road. Pretty simple idea but then again it’s easier to just keep the $ and buy power from your sister companies, wink wink…
Going green is as practical as people sprouting wings and learning to fly! Coal allows for the electricity in our region to power everything, including the computer to comment on this news article and the “green” hybrid electric car (fyi, it takes more energy to charge a battery-operated car than to operate a traditional gasoline combustible engine the same usage.) And the plastics that are in practically everything these days, including the insulation in “green homes” and the computers/smartphones owned by “green supporters” who use these products to post comments to this news article are derivatives of fossil fuels. The impractical idea of “Green” is like taking a never-ending trip on LSD.
I commend Gulf Power for building a methane capture facility here in Esc. Co. It’s a small part, but we need to find a way to escape the dirty status quo. Burning coal for electricity isn’t sustainable. We’d feel pretty silly complaining about the power bill when the air outside isn’t fit to breathe!
Burning coal releases sulfur dioxide, which causes acid rain and sick wildlife in our lakes and bayous, y’all. It’s a GOOD thing that the EPA taxes coal’s use as a fuel. The tax is a disincentive against unencumbered use of coal as a main power supply.
For those who question what Obama has to do with our power rates, do a Google search for “Obama and coal”. He promised when he ran in ‘08 to make coal so expensive that it would bankrupt any company trying to build a coal powered plant. Ever see the coal barges docked at the Crist Steam Plant? Guess what generates the power GP sells you? Now that he is President he has the EPA impose mandates restricting the use of coal and making it more expensive to burn by imposing emission requirements on coal plants.
You don’t see the impact of his policies on the price of gasoline either, but they are there. By preventing drilling on Fed. lands and the frozen Alaskan tundra he reduces the supply of domestic oil and gas. He can’t repeal the law of supply and demand: Supply goes down, then price goes up. The EPA also makes it impossible to build gasoline refineries. None have been built in decades in the U.S. Shut one down for maintenance and the supply of gas goes down and the price goes up. Again, hidden in the price at the pump but it affects the price never the less.
State of Florida guaranteed profit monopoly, plain and simple.
Only recourse is to go off-grid.
Umm,my bill already has a fuel surcharge on it,and has for years..Why doesn’t the current gubmint administration embargo foreign oil again as we did in the 70s,and 80s,and watch the oil prices plummet due to lack of overflow oil storage space overseas,loss of quarterly profits,and we start using our own oil instead?? The infrastructure is already there,the refineries are already there,the transporation is already there,the oil supplies here are vast,and plentiful(the entire Gulf of Mexico is one huge oil,and natural gas field,the entire Gulf Coast has oil,and natural gas everywhere,the northern border states are loaded with oil,natural gas as are most of the lower 48 states,and then there is Alaska which is full of oil…Gulf Powers profit margins are huge,they may not be the best as far as uninterrupted power,or surge controls,but they are pretty quick in emergencies(when compared to other municipalities,and other electrical companies/co ops,etc. that I have resided in)…If we all don’t force the gubmint to listen,and act in our behalf now then we will all be to blame later when we cannot afford to drive to work,power our homes,or heat our pre processed foods…
sooooo, I spent the time and money to make my house more efficient so I don’t use as much power AND save a little cash at the end of the month. In response since they aren’t making as much money off of myself and others who have chosen to do the same, Gulf Power increases rates to compensate for the loss of revenue. Great, the circle of greed continues. I bet the rank and file at Southern Company got their big bonuses again this year while the rest of us are “left in the dark”
Freaka Candy – please email me at g2gppa@southernco.com so we look at getting that tree trimmed that is affecting your transformer. I’ll ask a rep with our Forestry Services department to come by and take a look.
Jeff
Gulf Power Company
Why do they keep raising rates when they can’t even keep their power surges under control?? I have lived in many places and have never seen so many power surges in my house than here.
Bubba ray, it is worse than a thermostat issue. Many elderly don’t have and cant afford the luxury of a unit that runs off a thermostat. They heat their home with bottled gas by lighting a burner on the stove to take the chill out. Yes , many still in this day don’t even have a free standing heater…they are the poor elderly who society don’t really want to see or hear from. But, your comments are right on Bubba.
Jane, you are right, sad part is many people will have to decide if they can fill that prescription for medication this January. Elderly people do not have a chance.
Result of a “coal hating” administration…among other things as well.
Tom:
What does Obama has to do with this? Nothing. Research southern company which is another name for gulf power. Look at the profit section and note the dollars in millions and the operating cost. Profits are up and the cost to operate are pretty much the same for the past five years. Thanks to Stan and his board of executives. Not Obama. You think Stan care about ssi checks. GP idea is to sell you a thermostat that will keep cost down and add the price of the thermostat to your bill. This is like fuel prices, you can complain about it but really can’t do anything about it.
Tom, would you mind explaining the nexus from the president to the rate increase? I’m afraid I don’t see it. I believe the Public Service Commission controls that, and they are more closely connected to the state government than the federal government.
Still with all this they will not cut the tree limbs off the transformer that causes my lights to blink. And no the tree is not on my property no I can not cut it cause I’m old and poor…..
This is more of an increase than most people got from SSI this year! Gee thanks a lot…less food for the elderly because food costs and water costs have gone up too.
Thanks OBAMA!!!!!!!!!!!!