Allegheny Power Files for Recovery of Fuel & Purchased Power Costs in West Virginia
GREENSBURG, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Allegheny Power, the electric delivery business of Allegheny Energy, Inc. (NYSE: AYE), today submitted a request to the Public Service Commission of West Virginia to recover its costs for fuel and purchased power. This request is the second part of a two-step request for recovery of these costs.
Today’s request consists of $82 million of actual un-recovered costs as of June 30, 2009, which were reflected in the company’s July 10 request for an interim rate adjustment; and a projected $61 million under-recovery for calendar year 2010. Allegheny’s two-step approach to recover its costs is designed to smooth the rate impact on customers.
Under a cost recovery clause established by the commission in 2007, customer bills are adjusted periodically to reflect upward or downward changes in the cost of fuel and purchased power. Allegheny’s un-recovered balance of these costs has grown steadily in the past year, as actual expenses exceed the amount reflected in customer rates. Allegheny makes no profit on the recovery of its fuel and purchased power costs.
After the proposed rate increase, the monthly bill for a typical residential customer using 1,000 kilowatt-hours will be $93, an increase of $9.67 compared to current rates. Even with the proposed increase, Allegheny’s rates for West Virginia customers would remain 18 percent below the national average.
Allegheny Energy subsidiaries Monongahela Power Company and The Potomac Edison Company jointly submitted today’s filing. The new rates would be effective January 1, 2010.
To help customers manage their bills, Allegheny offers a budget plan, special payment plans, and access to energy assistance programs. Allegheny Power’s Watt Watchers programs also offer information and programs to help its customers manage their electricity bills and use energy more efficiently. For more information and tips on energy efficiency and conservation, visit the company’s Web site at www.alleghenypower.com and click on the Watt Watchers section, or call the company’s Customer Service Center at 1-800-Allegheny (1-800-255-3443).
Allegheny Energy
Headquartered in Greensburg, Pa., Allegheny Energy is an investor-owned electric utility with total annual revenues of over $3 billion and more than 4,000 employees. The company owns and operates generating facilities and delivers low-cost, reliable electric service to 1.6 million customers in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland and Virginia. For more information, visit our Web site at www.alleghenyenergy.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
In addition to historical information, this release may contain a number of "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as anticipate, expect, project, intend, plan, believe, and words and terms of similar substance used in connection with any discussion of future plans, actions, or events identify forward-looking statements. These include statements with respect to: rate regulation and the status of retail generation service supply competition in states served by Allegheny Energy’s distribution business, Allegheny Power; financing plans; demand for energy and the cost and availability of raw materials, including coal; provider-of-last-resort and power supply contracts; results of litigation; results of operations; internal controls and procedures; capital expenditures; status and condition of plants and equipment; capacity purchase commitments; and regulatory matters. Forward-looking statements involve estimates, expectations and projections and, as a result, are subject to risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that actual results will not materially differ from expectations. Actual results have varied materially and unpredictably from past expectations. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include, among others, the following: plant performance and unplanned outages; changes in the price of power and fuel for electric generation; general economic and business conditions; changes in access to capital markets and actions of rating agencies; complications or other factors that render it difficult or impossible to obtain necessary lender consents or regulatory authorizations on a timely basis; environmental regulations; the results of regulatory proceedings, including proceedings related to rates; changes in industry capacity, development and other activities by Allegheny Energy’s competitors; changes in the weather and other natural phenomena; changes in customer switching behavior and their resulting effects on existing and future load requirements; changes in the underlying inputs and assumptions, including market conditions used to estimate the fair values of commodity contracts; changes in laws and regulations applicable to Allegheny Energy, its markets or its activities; the loss of any significant customers or suppliers; dependence on other electric transmission and gas transportation systems and their constraints or availability; inflationary and interest rate trends changes in market rules, including changes to PJM participant rules and tariffs; the effect of accounting pronouncements issued periodically by accounting standard-setting bodies and accounting issues facing our organization; and the continuing effects of global instability, terrorism and war. Additional risks and uncertainties are identified and discussed in Allegheny Energy’s reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
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