PRESS RELEASE
Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan
May 12, 2008
Lee M Baatz - Assistant Vice President - Rates, Edison Sault Electric Company
- 906-632-5170
When
you drive by the gas station and see the posted prices do you wonder what is
happening to the price of other forms of energy?
Customers of Edison Sault can be assured that the cost of electricity
continues to be less than that of the average
Michigan
utility.
The Michigan
Public Service Commission (MPSC) updates an electric rate comparison for all
Michigan
utilities on a monthly basis and posts it on its internet site. The following
information was derived from the MPSC’s May 2008 electric rate comparison.
Cents
per kWh for 1,000 Residential kWh
Cents
per Percent Above
kWh
State Average
11.10
23.7%
National Average 11.16
24.4%
Lee Baatz, Edison Sault’s Assistant Vice-President – Rates, attributes the Company’s cost advantage partly to its base of low cost hydroelectric generation from its hydro plant and the hydro plant operated by the US Corps of Engineers in the Soo Locks complex.
Baatz
observed that Edison Sault’s rates have increased in recent years through the
implementation of the Power Supply Cost Recovery (PSCR), which allows increases
or decreases in the cost of fuel and purchased power to be passed along to the
customer. However, Baatz commented
that Edison Sault’s base rates have not been increased since 1982, a
remarkable time period for the electric industry.
Despite inflation, Edison Sault has been able to avoid a base rate increase through continued improvements in productivity. Baatz said that the best example of productivity improvement shows that since 1982 Edison Sault has experienced a 45% reduction in employees while competently serving a 46% increase in customers.
The
full comparison of monthly residential bills for all
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