Appalachian Power, Wheeling Power petition West Virginia PSC to increase rates
In a joint submission to the Public Service Commission of West Virginia (PSC), Appalachian Power and Wheeling Power requested an update of their current rates for the Modified Rate Base Cost (MRC) tracker and surcharge mechanism by approximately $10 million.
The MRBC tracker, put in place in 2021, allows limited recovery of costs associated with infrastructure investments undertaken between larger base rate cases. It is meant to institute timely cost recovery of incremental investments not recovered through current rates and reduce the frequency and sizable sticker shock connected to base rate case filings. There is an annual cap of 3 percent set on the tracker.
In this case, Appalachian Power’s proposal represents a 0.58 percent increase over total current revenue. Broken down for the individual, that would amount to monthly bill increases of approximately $1.23 for the average residential customer using 1,000 kW hours of energy.
The change would take effect Sept. 1, 2023, if approved.
