DECEMBER’S POWER RATE RISES AS WINTER KICKS IN

The power rate from Athens Utilities Board (AUB) for the coming month of December will increase a bit as winter rates from TVA take effect.

The local power rate will move from the current $0.09195 up to $0.09571 per kilowatt hour.  The increase primarily has to do with moving from TVA’s “transition rate,” which was in effect for the past two months, to the “winter rate.”

“The December uptick in rates is rooted in December’s base rate being higher than October and November’s,” said AUB’s Wayne Scarbrough.

Residential rates have two components.  There is the base rate, which changes seasonally, and a fuel-charge adder from TVA that changes monthly.

“The TVA base rate for December is up a bit compared to November, and we’ll have this same base rate for the winter season, which TVA sets as December through March,” Scarbrough said.

The winter base rate is $0.07088 per kilowatt hour.  TVA’s fuel charge for December is $0.02483, which when added to the base winter kilowatt hour rate yields the $0.09571 figure.

Wintertime brings colder temperatures, of course, and that means higher energy use for heating regardless of what you use to heat, whether that is wood, electricity or natural gas.

“By all means, this is the time of year to take steps to make your home as air-tight as you can, filling all those spaces where cold air can creep in.  And it helps to dress more warmly even when indoors,” Scarbrough said.

“The internet has lots of tips on how to winterize your home or apartment.  Even seemingly small fixes that are inexpensive can make a real difference,” he said.

Scarbrough also again warned of higher natural gas costs for the coming months.

“We’ve really had a good run when it comes to natural gas rates.  But it is creeping up in cost.  As I’ve mentioned the last couple of months, AUB isn’t raising its rate for natural gas, but the fuel cost adder that comes from the pipeline will be higher,” Scarbrough said.

“We expect to see natural gas be more than it has been during the last couple of winters, so we urge our customers to really plan for that now,” he said.

About 83 cents of every dollar that AUB’s power division collects go to TVA for wholesale power.