Regulators sign off on utility fuel costs
State regulators Thursday approved a proposal that will lead to some utility customers in North Florida paying more in their monthly bills because of higher-than-expected fuel costs for power plants.
The state Public Service Commission signed off on the proposal by Florida Public Utilities Co., which provides electricity in Jackson, Calhoun, Liberty and Nassau counties.
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The utility in June filed the request to recoup $3.79 million because fuel costs in 2021 were higher than expected.
The utility said in the filing that it has also seen increased fuel costs this year but is not immediately trying to pass along those amounts.
Customers will see increased bills from August through December to cover the costs.
The June filing said residential customers who use 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity a month would pay an additional $14.89 a month.
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Utilities use 1,000 kilowatt-hour residential bills as a benchmark, though actual electricity usage varies widely.
Utilities generally are allowed to pass along fuel costs to customers and are not supposed to profit from those costs.
Each year, the Public Service Commission sets the amounts that utilities can collect for fuel in the following year.
But if costs are higher than expected, utilities can seek “mid-course corrections.” The commission in recent months also has approved mid-course corrections for Florida Power & Light, Duke Energy Florida and Tampa Electric Co., as the utility industry grapples with high natural-gas costs.
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