Tampa Electric customers could see slightly higher bills beginning in January, according to an annual adjustment to reflect the prices of fuel and other factors. Bills would continue to remain significantly below the national average and among the lowest in Florida.
The company today filed projected costs for fuel with the Florida Public Service Commission (PSC), to take effect Jan. 1. The PSC is expected to vote on the request after a hearing scheduled to begin Nov. 2.
“We are pleased to be able to maintain stable bills that are among the lowest in Florida – while providing outstanding value to our customers,” said Archie Collins, president and chief executive officer of Tampa Electric.
If the PSC approves the requests as filed, the typical residential customer who uses 1,000 kilowatt-hours would see their monthly bill rise to $120.29 beginning Jan. 1. This is an increase of $2.22, or 2 percent, from the $118.07 they are paying today. Commercial and industrial customers’ increases would vary, depending on usage.
The proposed total bill includes multiple filings that incorporate expected fuel prices, capacity costs, the Storm Protection Plan, plus a settlement of the company’s recent rate request.
Fuel costs are passed through from fuel suppliers to customers with no markup or profit to Tampa Electric. The cost of fuel is currently about one-quarter of a residential customer’s bill. Tampa Electric maximizes the use of existing low-cost, well-performing plants and power purchased from other companies to mitigate costs. The fuel portion of the bill is based on actual costs during the first six months of 2021, projections for the remainder of 2021 and expected fuel prices in 2022.
Tampa Electric’s fuel mix includes about 85 percent natural gas, about 7.5 percent solar and about 7.5 percent coal. Tampa Electric deploys a variety of strategies to manage fuel costs, including optimizing the use of its generating fleet to consume fuel as efficiently as possible and purchasing power from other companies, if it results in a lower cost for customers.
Tampa Electric, one of Florida’s largest investor-owned electric utilities, serves about 800,000 customers in West Central Florida. Tampa Electric is a subsidiary of Emera Inc., a geographically diverse energy and services company headquartered in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
