Power cost adjustment increases Jan. 7, 2008
(1-08)

    LUCEDALE, MS – Singing River Electric has announced an increase in the power cost adjustment (PCA) on members’ electric bills rendered after Jan. 7, 2008.
     The power cost adjustment on Singing River Electric member billing statements will increase 3.4 mills from 23.7 to 27.1 mills, or $0.0271 per kilowatt-hour. As a result, a typical residential member bill for 1,000 kilowatt-hours will increase $3.40, or 3.3 percent. The PCA increase will also apply to commercial and industrial customers.
     The power cost adjustment is not a rate increase but a temporary adjustment. It can be an increase or decrease depending on the cost of generating and purchasing electricity. The adjustment is an expense passed through to the member without profit or markup.
     “Rising power costs are hurting every utility in the nation,” said Singing River Electric General Manager and CEO Lee Hedegaard. “They reflect not only the increased cost of the fuel but also the costs of building additional generation resources including costs added due to federal regulations on particular fuel sources.”
      Managing power costs is important because 75 percent of Singing River Electric’s total budget is made up of purchased power. Power costs are managed by working with South Mississippi Electric Power Association, a generation and transmission cooperative, to purchase a diversified mix of fuel sources.
      “By purchasing a blend of owned and contracted resources to generate electricity that utilize coal, natural gas, nuclear and hydro power, the cooperative minimizes the full impact of any individual fuel source cost and continues to maintain competitive energy prices,” said Hedegaard.
      “We want our members to understand how the rising cost of generating electricity will affect their electric bill,” he added. Singing River Electric was able to implement a PCA decrease of 1.3 mills in April of 2007.
      Even with the present PCA increase, Singing River Electric members experience some of the lowest cost per kilowatt-hour in the nation.
      “Our members have the ultimate power to lower their energy bills by lowering their energy use. We are partnering with our members through our Web site and offering educational tools to enable them to do just that,” noted Hedegaard.