Significant Rate Hike Pitched By Utility: Here's How Much More You'll Be Paying

CONNECTICUT — The state's largest electrical utility has filed for a rate increase expected to hit Connecticut wallets on May 1.

Eversource residential customers would pay an extra $38 a month for the average household bill of 700 kilowatt-hours, according to documents filed by the company with the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority on Thursday. That would translate to about 19 percent of customers' per-kilowatt-hour charges.

The power company attributes the rate spike largely to a 2019 state deal cut with Dominion Energy, which operates the Millstone nuclear power station in Waterford. The arrangement locked in a minimum rate for Dominion over the next decade.

Eversource is also pointing a finger at the state's initiatives adopted during the COVID pandemic to shield low income and medical hardship customers from high energy bills. "Overdue customer balances are paid for by all customers," the company said in a news release Friday.

"In the last two years, we have advocated for various changes to provide value and rate stability for our customers," said Eversource President of Electric Operations in Connecticut Steve Sullivan. "Our customers want predictability, and not a constantly and significantly changing electric bill each year."

In a letter delivered Gov. Ned Lamont’s Office, Attorney General Tong’s Office, the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, and the Office of the Consumer Counsel on Thursday, Eversource proposed solutions the company said would shield customers from "rate shock."

Those included phasing in any potential rate increase over a period of time later in 2024, although the full bit would still be due by spring 2025.

The utility also suggested the regulators fundamentally change the ratemaking methodology "to allow for the forecasting of costs and factor them into rates," and so avoid the issue in the future.

"Without aligning current costs to collection from customers, rates for customers will consistently tend to be higher and more volatile for customers than market trends. Collaboration is needed to revisit policies that layer past and future costs to avoid constant rate shock now and in the future," the Eversource officials warned.

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