SCE&G utility bills might go up by $13

Customers of South Carolina Electric & Gas Co. could see their monthly power bills rise by $13 or more by early next year.

The utility, blaming rising prices for coal, is seeking to increase the fuel portion of its rates in two phases, according to a request filed with state regulators Tuesday.

If approved, the first increase would take affect in November, when residential customers would see a 6.06 percent increase. The monthly electric bill of a household using 1,000 kilowatts would increase $6.53 to $114.20.

The second proposed increase of 5.72 percent would take effect in January 2009, bringing the price for 1,000 kilowatts of power to $120.73.

Rates also would rise for business and industrial customers.

Kevin Marsh, SCE&G's president, said the company's hands are tied, as "global energy prices are rising sharply, which is beyond our control."

"About 65 percent of our electricity is generated through the burning of coal," Marsh said in a statement. "Recently, transportation and supply pressures ... have spurred dramatic increases in the price of coal. When we were forecasting for future needs at the time the current fuel factors were established earlier this spring, a ton of coal was priced in the mid-$80 range. We're now seeing sustained prices in the spot markets in excess of $150 per ton, an increase of more than 75 percent."

Typically, the state Public Service Commission reviews once a year the costs that SCE&G incurs to run its electric generators, with most of the increases or decreases approved in or around May. The company said this was the first time it has sought approval for a "mid-period" fuel adjustment to its power rates.

SCE&G does not earn a profit on any fuel increases.

The fuel adjustments are separate from what utilities call their base rates, which SCE&G also has filed an application to raise.

Scana Corp., the power company's parent, said in June that it will need to raise its electric rates 37 percent over 11 years to pay for two new nuclear units it is proposing to build in the Midlands with Santee Cooper.

Assuming regulators approve the request, the monthly electric bill for the average SCE&G residential ratepayer would rise gradually by nearly $40, to $147.11 in 2019.

Separately, state regulators are set to consider today SCE&G's request to start work at its Fairfield County plant, where it wants to build the two new reactors.

SCE&G has told the commission it needs to start work now, even though regulators won't decide before February whether the company can build the reactors and start charging customers for them. SCE&G has one reactor at the plant in Jenkinsville.