Entergy Mississippi Customers’ Bills Expected to Drop Again
Contact:
Mara Hartmann
601-969-2520 (office)
601-594-9042 (cell)
mhartma@entergy.com
Utility files fourth quarter fuel adjustment today
Jackson, Miss. – Assuming market conditions remain similar to what they are today, customers of Entergy Mississippi, Inc. should soon see further relief from high summer electric bills due to a continued drop in natural gas prices.
The utility filed for a fourth quarter fuel adjustment today that could mean bills will fall another 9 percent beginning October 1. This filing is in addition to the mid-quarter adjustment Entergy Mississippi proposed to the Mississippi Public Service Commission earlier this week that would reduce bills nearly 10 percent in September. These steps combined could reduce what customers pay for electricity from October through December by as much as 18.6 percent compared to July and August bills.
“Natural gas costs, though still high, are continuing a downward descent,” said Haley Fisackerly, Entergy Mississippi president and chief executive officer. “We are hopeful this trend will continue but remain cautiously optimistic as costs for fuel prices are affected by a number of factors worldwide, such as hurricanes, demand and higher temperatures.”
Natural gas prices skyrocketed more than 120 percent since last year, leading to a 28 percent increase in customer’s bills in July and August. In late July, prices began dropping significantly, prompting Entergy Mississippi to file the mid-quarter fuel adjustment. Today’s proposed adjustment is expected to have an even bigger impact, with residential customers paying about 9 percent less than in September.
“Natural gas prices are still up 60 percent over last year, but are trending in the right direction,” Fisackerly said. “That, coupled with lower temperatures just around the corner, means our customers should get some very welcome relief.”
Entergy Mississippi makes a routine quarterly fuel filing with the Mississippi Public Utilities Staff and the Mississippi Public Service Commission to recover costs of fuel used to provide electric service to customers. The staff reviews the costs and makes recommendations to the Mississippi Public Service Commission which adjusts the fuel component of customer rates accordingly. Both the staff and commission have 45 days prior to the start of the affected quarter to review the filing and approve or make changes before it goes into effect. By law, the utility makes no profit on fuel charges.
The fuel adjustment consists of two parts—the projected cost of natural gas for the coming quarter and the difference in the actual cost of natural gas for two quarters prior. This difference will reflect either an over- or under-recovery of costs from customers for that quarter.
Entergy Mississippi is constantly monitoring the price of fuel and taking advantage of contracts that allow the company to purchase less-expensive power. The utility also uses a diverse mix of fuels to keep costs as low as possible, and is fortunate to have a significant percentage of low-cost and stable nuclear and coal-based energy. Still, more than half of the energy provided to customers is based on natural gas.
Entergy Mississippi, Inc. provides electricity to more than 433,000 customers in 45 counties. It is a subsidiary of Entergy Corporation. Entergy owns and operates power plants with approximately 30,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity, and it is the second-largest nuclear generator in the United States. Entergy delivers electricity to 2.6 million utility customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.
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Entergy Mississippi’s online address is www.entergy-mississippi.com.