National Grid rate hike proposal would help pay for infrastructure upgrades, additions - CNYcentral.com
National Grid rate hike proposal would help pay for infrastructure upgrades, additions
New York — The gas and electric provider National Grid is seeking state approval to raise rates on 2.3 million customers in Upstate New York.
The average customer would be asked to pay about $450 more yearly if approved.
National Grid CEO John Pettigrew spoke at a seminar in October in London, saying "Something we spend a lot of time as a business thinking about, what can we do to mitigate the bill impact, particularly for low-income folks."
The company is based in the United Kingdom, providing the same services as they do in the U.S.
A recent report filed by The Guardian shows Pettigrew himself earns about a $9 million salary.
He manages a multi-billion dollar company publicly traded on stock exchanges in the two continents where it does business.
Company earnings reports show the company's revenue over the past two years exceeds $50 billion, resulting in profits of about $13 billion.
The company claims a 20% rate hike on gas delivery and a 15% percent rate hike on electric delivery is necessary to raise the money needed to improve infrastructure across New York.
Jared Paventi of National Grid says the hike would help pay for "Moving power and natural gas over long distances, our sub-stations which scale power down, and then to the distribution network which runs up and down our neighborhood streets."
He says it's their responsibility to be good stewards with your hard-earned money, and hopefully provide continued quality service. "The knowledge that when they flip the switch in their home, or their business, or turn up the heat or turn down the temperature for air conditioning, that it's going to kick on."
The company's proposal now must survive scrutiny from customers as well as local and state leaders. "By next spring we will present a negotiated settlement between the Department of public service, consumer groups, and National Grid that balances out our customer needs with the needs of the energy system," said Paventi.
Then there will be further review from the Public Service Commission and a determination on whether the rate hike number needs to come down.
Related Knowledge Center: ENERGY BASICS: electricity
Electricity is a secondary energy source: it is generated through the conversion of primary energy sources such as natural gas, coal, solar, hydropower, and wind. Electricity’s versatility is not cost-free: a substantial amount of energy is lost in its generation and the cost of storage is high, compared with fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas. The economics of battery technology hold the key to expanded use of renewable sources to generate electricity.