Summer electric bills may shock you

By Tom Bower <a href=news.mysanantonio.com>San Antonio Express-News Web Posted : 05/14/2003 12:00 AM   As temperatures go up this summer, San Antonio residents can expect to see a bigger-than-expected jump in their utility bills.

Higher natural gas prices and less power from the South Texas Project nuclear plant mean the average electric bill could go up 33 percent this summer compared to last year, City Public Service officials said Tuesday.

Average monthly residential electric bills for June through September are projected to average $158.62, compared to last year's $118.89.

"We normally do this (summer projections) in late May, but we wanted to get this information to the news media and the public earlier this year so they can take action today to minimize the impact of these factors on their utility bills," said Steve Bartley, CPS director of regulatory relations.

The public wasn't amused.

"Somebody's gouging us," said a city employee who asked that his name not be used. "My salary doesn't go up one-third, how come my utility bill goes up one-third?"

The 66-year-old man, who lives in an apartment, noted there's not much that can be done about it, however.

"You can (complain) and scream, but you can't plug in anywhere else," he said.

Some residents worried whether seniors on fixed incomes will be able to afford the increases, while others said they'll have to curtail other expenses to make ends meet.

Cathy Gordon, 40, said her family already got rid of a waterbed because it was getting too expensive to keep heated. She'll have to take other measures to pay the higher bills, she said.

"I was a little dismayed, but it wasn't unexpected," said the single mother of two. "Emotionally, I can handle it. Financially, that's another story."

Last summer's bills were lower than expected because of heavy rains, Bartley said. He added that the National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center is forecasting temperatures to be normal this summer, which would be warmer and more humid than last year.

The city-owned utility contributes 14 percent of its gross revenues to the city's general fund.

While the rate charges for electricity have not changed since 1991, CPS can pass along to customers cost increases for producing power, known as a "fuel adjustment charge."

Bartley said the higher monthly bills are the result of two things: customers using more electricity to run their air conditioners, and power becoming more costly to produce, mainly because of higher natural gas prices.

Although natural gas prices have dropped from a high of $20 per thousand cubic feet in February, Bartley said the utility is projecting it will pay an average market price of $5.75 this summer. That's 60 percent higher than the $3.50 paid last summer.

Throughout the year, CPS generates about 15 percent of its electricity with natural gas, 46 percent with coal and 27 percent with nuclear power. Another 12 percent comes from purchased power and wind-generated. However, more natural gas is used in the summer to help CPS fire up backup generators to meet peak demands.

Another factor, Bartley said, is that CPS will be getting only about half the electricity the utility normally does out of its 28 percent ownership of the nuclear power plant in Bay City.

Last April, a routine inspection revealed signs of a leak from the Unit 1 reactor's coolant system. The reactor was shut down; it's unknown when it will return to service.

Bartley said other factors also affect the price of natural gas, including a shortage of gas in storage, economic reverberations from Gulf War II and the oil industry strike in Venezuela.

The agency's monthly newsletter includes rates charged per 1,000 kilowatt-hours, and CPS regularly is among the cheapest. In March, for example, the most recent month available, Central Power & Light charged $110.33 per 1,000 kilowatt-hours in Corpus Christi, and El Paso Electric charged $104.97, while Houston's Reliant Energy charged $95.81.

By comparison, CPS charged $65.95 that month.

Marcos Espinoza, 48, pointed out that difference, noting San Antonio residents are lucky to pay rates lower than in other cities, but said he expects that advantage to end sometime.

"Sooner or later it's going to catch up to us," the construction worker said.

tbower@express-news.net Staff Writer Karen Adler contributed to this report.