Jackson Free Press

The Mississippi Public Service Commission issued a final order today to the utility companies to use the prime rate of interest when calculating carrying charges.

Northern District Public Service Commissioner Brandon Presley said the order is a result of a PSC inquiry opened last October after suspicions that Entergy Mississippi and Mississippi Power Company were charging ratepayers with excessive interest rates when assessing fuel projection costs. The investigation began brewing when Entergy requested permission to raise rates almost 30 percent last year, due to increased costs of natural gas.

Presley said in a release that he had pointed out that Entergy Mississippi was charging Mississippi ratepayers 12.83 percent on all under collections, while Mississippi Power Company was charging 13.25 percent, even though the prime lending rate at the time was five percent.

"Given our volatile economy, I believe the public's interest would be best served if companies would quit guessing about fuel costs and simply charge ratepayers the actual cost of fuel," Presley said in the release.

The PSC order is not the end of the investigation, however, with AG Jim Hood joining the PSC in investigating suspicions that Entergy Mississippi inflated Mississippi customers' energy rates to cover the costs of a power purchasing contract in Louisiana.

Entergy spokesperson Mara Hartmann said Entergy had advocated linking its rates to the prime rate during PSC hearings last July.

Previous Comments

ID

144324

Comment

If it helps lower utility costs, I'm all for it.

Author

golden eagle

Date

2009-03-04T13:17:11-06:00