Texas homes face $7 monthly increase in Oncor electricity rates

TYLER, Texas (KETK)– As Texas continues to experience growth, Oncor has filed a request for a base rate review that would increase how much residential customers pay each month.

According to Oncor, the company filed a request on Thursday for a base rate review to help further support the state’s energy needs. The filing will be made through the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) and the 210 cities in the Oncor service area that have original jurisdiction over Oncor’s rates.

If approved, the new rates would result in an increase of around $7 per month month for a residential customer using 1,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity per month.

“Oncor has been entrusted with the extraordinary responsibility of helping power the unprecedented growth across Texas. We are requesting this rate review as we’re executing on our approximately $36 billion five-year capital plan as we seek to minimize the impacts of increased storms on our customers. These efforts require Oncor to attract, train and maintain the safety of a large and active workforce and obtain materials and equipment on a record scale. Oncor’s construction and maintenance activities currently rely on about 5,500 employees and nearly 9,000 contractors who together help serve our customers.” 

Senior Vice President, Chief Customer Officer and Chief HR Officer Debbie Dennis

The companies requested increase to base rates falls primarily due to to these three categories:

• Recovering storm related costs
• Adjusting for rising costs and inflation
• Helping keep debt costs low

“Our decision to file this request was not made lightly and we have done our best to absorb higher costs for several years,” Dennis said. “We recognize the potential impacts a rate increase will have on our customers and we do our best to balance these impacts with the company’s ability to continue to meet the needs of our growing state.”

Oncor explained that rate reviews expect to last at least six to nine months and the company plans to ask for a partial interim adjustment of rates to begin to recover some of the increased costs while the case is still pending, subject to refund to the final rates approved by PUCT.

To learn more about rate review and customer updates, Texans are encouraged to visit their website.