It’s been a difficult second half of the year for National Grid Rhode Island. The state’s largest utility has had a bull’s eye on its back since gaining a nearly 20 percent electricity rate hike this past summer, despite vocal opposition.
The size of the hike, for the six-month period that began Oct. 1, caught state officials and businesses by surprise. The utility said it was tied to price increases set in motion by a 2014 auction of future electricity-generating capacity that most people outside the energy industry had forgotten about.
Then came the Oct. 29-30 storm that left parts of Rhode Island and the region without power for days. What angered many locally, however, was that the utility seemingly did not have plans in place for a worst-case scenario that could have given it a head start in attracting response crews from unaffected states. Gov. Gina M. Raimondo has ordered a state review.
Late last month came renewed criticism of the utility over its request for an additional $71.6 million annually from customers. The rate hikes would help offset built-up business costs for the delivery of both electricity and natural gas, the utility says.
Again, some state energy officials were caught off guard. The request followed a state report seeking a host of regulatory reforms in the power sector.
Regulators will decide whether the latest hike is justified, but there is a widening communication gap between the utility, its customers and state officials that is bad for business for everyone involved. The utility must work more closely – and proactively – with state officials to stem growing public distrust of its operation.