Edison to raise rates starting next month
Utility cites rising natural-gas prices in increasing residential rates by an average of about 7 percent.
The Orange County Register
Southern California Edison's residential customers will see their electricity rates increase by an average of about 7 percent starting next month, mostly because of rising natural gas prices, the company said.
Natural gas is the biggest input at most electricity generating plants. Many of Edison's contracts with generators call for prices tied to the cost of natural gas.
The California Public Utilities Commission on Thursday approved three separate decisions that will affect Edison's rates. The precise effect of the changes won't be known until next month, but they are likely to result in an average increase of 5 percent across all customer groups, with residential ratepayers getting a slightly bigger hike and business customers getting a lesser one, said Akbar Jazayeri, Edison's director of revenue and tariffs.
The changes will take effect April 15, Jazayeri said.
About 40 percent of Edison's residential customers, those who use 130 percent or less of their monthly "baseline" allocation, won't see any increase at all. Baseline is a discounted amount of electricity intended to cover minimum needs.
For the other 60 percent of Edison's residential customers, the average monthly bill could jump 10 percent.
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Oil prices hit a record. AAA says gasoline prices are going up.
Q. What's up?
A. The OPEC cartel this week pledged to increase its output but said Thursday that the growing economies of the United States, China and Japan would keep demand ahead of supply this year - keeping upward pressure on oil prices.
Retail gasoline averages $2 a gallon or more in 35 states, AAA said. The fuel was most expensive in Hawaii at $2.441. Prices averaged $2.328 in California. In Orange County, the average was $2.35 Thursday, up 2 cents from Wednesday.
Q. If oil prices go up, doesn't that mean the price I pay for gasoline goes up?
A. Not necessarily. In California, we get 48 percent of our oil from within the state; 22 percent comes from Alaska; and the rest arrives from overseas.
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