We’re investing in technology and enhancements that enable automatic and remote restoration of service. Where more in-depth repairs are needed, these technologies allow us to diagnose and repair problems more quickly, reducing the time and cost of restoring service.

To address evolving risks such as extreme weather and cyber threats, we're upgrading our systems and have moved critical facilities out of areas vulnerable to storm surge and flooding. These investments help protect the electric grid, reduce the risk of outages and support reliable service for customers.

We’re upgrading our equipment and advancing technology at our power plants to optimize their efficiency and reduce fuel costs. This lowers operating costs and emissions, as well as reduces start-up time, allowing for faster response when energy demand is high or when we need to supplement intermittent energy sources, like solar, during cloud cover or darkness.

Our solar investments reduce the fuel needed to generate electricity, cutting fuel costs. Since 2017, our solar projects have saved customers hundreds of millions of dollars in fuel costs.

We’re storing solar energy so it’s available when the sun isn’t shining. This complements solar power plants by further reducing the amount of fuel we need to make electricity. It can also delay the need to invest in new power plants.

We expanded smart technology across more than 200,000 street and area lights to help keep our roadways safe and reduce crime. Our investments allow faster repairs and reduce maintenance costs by automatically notifying us when a light goes out. We also use solar-powered streetlights that remain operational during outages and after extreme weather.

In August 2026, Tampa Electric’s temporary storm recovery charge ended. This decreased residential and small business bills by $19.95 per 1,000 kWh, representing a reduction of 11% to 12%, depending on usage.

Tampa Electric has also requested an additional bill reduction beginning in January 2027 because of lower projected fuel costs.

Lower natural gas prices have reduced the cost of fuel used to generate electricity, and those savings more than offset the cost of regulator-approved investments Tampa Electric is making to strengthen the grid, improve reliability and serve the region's continued growth. Tampa Electric is requesting that those savings be reflected in customer bills beginning in January 2027.

In January 2026, residential bills increased by $8.88 per 1,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh), including a $5.51 increase in base rates and a $3.37 increase in fuel and other charges.

The base-rate increase supports investments approved by the Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) to improve reliability and expand fuel-saving strategies. These investments help Tampa Electric provide safe, reliable service while helping control long-term operating costs. The fuel and other charges reflect regularly reviewed costs, including fuel prices.

The temporary storm recovery surcharge helped pay for restoration costs from the 2024 hurricane season, costs from 2023 named storms and replenishment of the storm reserve fund. The charge began in March 2025 and ended in August 2026.

No. Tampa Electric's 2026 and 2027 rate filings were required regulatory filings that implemented previously approved PSC decisions. They were not requests for additional funds.

In 2024, Tampa Electric requested base rate adjustments for 2025 through 2027. The Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) approved key projects and associated base rate increases of $185.9 million in 2025, $86.6 million in 2026 and $9.1 million in 2027.

Ahead of the 2026 and 2027 adjustments, Tampa Electric filed required documentation with the PSC. These filings did not request additional funds. Instead, they accounted for the completion of PSC-approved projects and showed Tampa Electric's calculations for the upcoming year's rates for each customer rate class.

For example, in September 2025, Tampa Electric filed an accounting for 2026 rates that aligned with the PSC-approved $86.6 million. At the same time, Tampa Electric filed its standard annual clause adjustments, including fuel costs for 2026. The PSC approved these changes, confirming that the documentation was appropriate and that the approved price changes should proceed.

Tampa Electric works to lower fuel costs by improving power plant efficiency, producing more electricity with less fuel, strategically managing fuel purchases and using the lowest-cost sources of power available – including buying power from other electric companies when the cost is lower.

Tampa Electric’s solar investments have saved customers hundreds of millions of dollars in avoided fuel costs since 2017.

The fuel charge is the cost for the fuel used to generate electricity.

Fuel charges are typically adjusted each January and may be adjusted more frequently if fuel markets change significantly. When fuel costs decrease, customers can benefit from lower bills. When fuel costs increase, bills may increase as well.

Electric rates are only one factor that affects your monthly bill. Your total bill also depends on how much electricity you use.

Energy use often increases during periods of hot weather because air conditioning systems run longer and more frequently. Factors such as the size of your home or business, the number of people in the building, appliance usage and energy efficiency can also affect your bill.

As a result, a customer may pay more in a particular month if they use more electricity, even when rates have decreased. Likewise, a customer who uses less electricity may see a lower bill even if rates increase. Tampa Electric offers many free energy-saving programs to help customers use less electricity and lower their bill.

Some comparisons cite significant rate and bill increases since 2020, but 2020 was an unusual year. Comparing today's bills to 2020 can overstate the increase.

During the pandemic, Tampa Electric accelerated the return of fuel costs to help customers facing job losses. We temporarily lowered all residential bills by more than 20% in mid-2020 and returned $130 million to customers, resulting in some of the lowest electric prices in the United States at that time.

Using a more representative starting point provides a more meaningful comparison. For example, the December 2021 bill amount of $118.07 compared to the August 2026 bill amount of $156.43 is a 32% increase. After adjusting for inflation, it is an 8% increase, or an average annual growth rate of about 1.6%.

Those rate increases support critical investments that help deliver safe, reliable power for our growing region well into the future while optimizing operations to avoid otherwise higher costs for customers in the years ahead.