LANSING – Consumers Energy on Thursday announced a rate increase of 4.2 percent for all of its customers, residential and business, averaging about $4.09 per month for the typical home.
In March, the utility filed a $225 million request with the PSC to adjust its electric rate structure but has since come down to $170 million, Consumers Energy spokesperson Dan Bishop said in an e-mail Thursday.
He said a typical household using an average of 650 kilowatt-hours a month would see its average monthly bill increase by about $4.09.
Bishop also said the new rates are temporary until the PSC makes a final ruling by the end of February 2017 and reiterated the cost adjustment is due to the company’s decision to upgrade its electric system to “do work that has a clear impact on people’s lives,” including:
- Replacing poles, lines and electrical equipment;
- Clearing tree branches and limbs away from electric lines;
- Installing environmental upgrades at power plants; and
- Accelerating installation of upgraded meters.
“Even with this increase, the total electric bill paid by our residential customers remains about 10 percent below the U.S. average,” Bishop said.
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