Duke Energy customers owe $2.5 billion-plus for Edwardsport plant

[bloomington-lib]

Finally, after years of legal fighting, it’s official: Duke Energy Corp. and its 790,000 Indiana customers will split the $3.5 billion cost of the Edwardsport power plant — one of the largest, most expensive and most disputed construction projects in Indiana history.

But it’s not an even split, and how much each side will have to pay is likely to produce some grumbling.

The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission ruled Thursday that Duke Energy must swallow about $900 million for the plant, which in 2010 became enveloped in an ethics cloud involving a revolving door between the regulatory commission’s staff and the utility’s ranks.
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Duke said the ruling will result in customers’ bills climbing 14 percent to 16 percent. Of that, a 5 percent rise already has taken place. The remainder will occur in two steps: Customers will see a rate hike of 3 percent to 4 percent in January, and two other hikes totaling 6 percent to 7 percent by early 2014.


http://www.indystar.com/article/20121227/BUSINESS/121227022/Duke-Energy-customers-owe-2-5-billion-plus-Edwardsport-plant

[UBCchuck]

1. Co-op

I live in the southern part of the state, and we are on a co-op electric service. We have been getting a small check back for a few years now. I hope that the co-op,s never start selling out to Duke energy.