WARWICK – National Grid Rhode Island has until Friday to defend its three-year rate plan that would slightly raise most of the state’s electric and gas bills beginning in September, after state regulators took issue with parts of the plan.
The R.I. Public Utilities Commission last week turned down a number of programs and initiatives that National Grid sought to fund through the proposed electric and gas distribution rates. However, last week’s actions are not expected to significantly change the projected billing increases, and decreases in some cases, to customers.
As previously proposed, the rates would increase monthly electric bills for a typical home by 4 percent in the first year and by less than 1 percent in the second and third years.
However, households designated as low-income would see a decrease of nearly 16 percent in the first year, followed by increases between 2 percent and 3 percent in the second and third years.
Commercial and industrial customers would see increases between 1 percent and 5 percent in the first year, followed by increases of less than 1 percent in the second and third years.
In addition, gas heating rates for a typical home would decrease by less than 1 percent in the first year, then increase by 1.5 percent in the second year and by less than 1 percent in the third year.
Gas heating rates for a typical low-income home would drop by 22 percent in the first year, then increase by 1.5 percent in the second year and less than 1 percent in the third year.
Gas heating rates for commercial and industrial customers would range from a decrease of about 7 percent to an increase of 2 percent in the first year, followed by increases between less than 1 percent and less than 2 percent in both the second and third years.
The three-member Public Utilities Commission voted last week to accept and reject different parts of National Grid’s plan, giving the utility company and other interested parties until Friday to file responses.
If the commission’s changes are not challenged, National Grid will have until Aug. 16 to file any adjustments to the proposed rates and update the impact on future bills to its various classes of customers, based on the recent changes made by the commission.
The commission has tentatively scheduled an Aug. 24 open meeting to finalize the new rates before they would go into effect Sept. 1.
National Grid has proposed new base distribution rates to raise an additional $48.1 million over three years to cover operating costs and modernize its electric grid system, including technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help control future costs.
The rates as proposed earlier by National Grid are not expected to change much through the process, according to a commission spokesman.
In a separate rate filing, National Grid also is proposing to increase its base electric rates for residential and commercial customers for six months, beginning Oct. 1.
The Public Utilities Commission has scheduled a hearing Aug. 27 on that case, and a decision on the so-called “winter rates” filing could be made then, a commission spokesman said.
The winter rate hikes are needed to pay for the increased costs of buying electricity from suppliers, National Grid said.
The proposed winter rates would raise monthly bills by $18.97, or 19 percent, for a typical home, and by about 20 percent for a typical small commercial customer, a company spokesman said.
However, the company said the impact to monthly bills would be lessened if the commission adopts an alternative set of rate increases spread out over an entire year, instead of just six months.
Scott Blake is a PBN staff writer. Email him at Blake@pbn.com.
