Collapsing Coal-Fired Electric Utility Jacks Up Rates 38% In Collapsing Coal-Powered Appalachia

[hatrack]

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The common denominator is American Electric Power, one of the nation's largest utilities. It owns Kentucky Power, along with two subsidiaries in neighboring West Virginia, Wheeling Power and Appalachian Power. In May, Wheeling Power and Appalachian Power requested permission from the Public Service Commission of West Virginia to boost their monthly residential bill 11 percent because of declining sales. That was on top of a 29 percent increase between 2014 and 2018.

Customers in both states are furious that the regulators are going along. "Our jobs available in this state are not a living wage, and many are working two, three jobs just to make it," wrote Elizabeth Bland of Beckley, West Virginia, in her protest letter to the commission. "Please turn down this request from Appalachian Power for the sake of all West Virginians."

Rising rates are just part of the problem. Kentucky Power's monthly bill also includes surcharges, and a line for each customer's share of the utility's fixed costs. These add up in precious dollars.

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Hatton, who is the daughter of one coal miner and wife of another, also sees the value of solar power as an option for businesses and residents with high power bills. She helped defeat legislation in Kentucky his spring that would have devalued rooftop solar power. Utilities backed it, but it was rejected by lawmakers driven by constituents' rage about power bills.

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https://insideclimatenews.org/news/14082018/coal-energy-prices-appalachia-mining-electric-bill-kentucky-economy-aep-rates

[MyOwnPeace]

1. But, but........

"King Coal" needs to be fed, and IQ45 promised that coal would be back.
Surely he wouldn't lie, would he?

Another group of voters who are paying for believing the fool. How can one possibly feel sorry for them - it's the price they are paying for MAGA! How much greater are you now?

Don't forget to wear your red MAGA hat (NOT made in America) when they show up to cut off your electricity!

[Glorfindel]

2. Beautiful, clean coal! MAGA! Yay, Trump! Thoughts and prayers for the rate-payers,

though. But "Promises made, promises kept." Gotta keep further enriching the millionaires and billionaires, don'cha know? That's the most important promise. Can't make a great, big, beautiful omelette without breaking a few meaningless eggs, right? When you're paying your electric bills, just remember the warm glow you felt when voting for the Donald.

[TNLib]

3. Those aging coal plants are expensive

I use to work for TVa and they would loose money keeping some of the aging coal plants going. The reason why they weren't shutting them down was politics to keep those old coal towns working. The coal plants are now way past their experation date and they were constantly going out on forced outages. I think TVA under Obama's watch started to retire some of its fleet.

But I'm not surprised this happening.