Georgia Power Files Plan for Customer Rate Decrease with Public Service Commission

Georgia Power today filed its expected Fuel Cost Recovery (Docket 56765) and Storm Cost Recovery (Docket 44280) cases with the Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC). Together, the cases seek to lower costs for customers through two distinct filings. The first filing requests to recover the cost of fuel – including coal and natural gas – to operate power generation plants to serve customers, and the second filing requests to recover costs to quickly and safely restore electric service following storms of all sizes – from devastating hurricanes like Hurricane Helene to pop-up thunderstorms. The cumulative effect of the filings will result in overall lower rates for customers beginning this summer if approved by the Georgia PSC.

“Delivering reliable and affordable electricity to millions of Georgia homes and businesses requires prudent management and planning at every level, every day,” said Tyler Cook, CFO and treasurer for Georgia Power. “While electricity rates are climbing in other parts of the country and demand growth is placing increasing pressure on power systems nationwide, we’re working with the Georgia PSC to manage growth wisely, optimizing all areas of our business to allow us to provide savings to our customers.”

Thanks to the strength of Georgia Power’s diverse generation mix and strategic fuel planning program, the company has been able to reduce its fuel rate – decreasing the fuel portion of the bill significantly beginning in June. As the company adds additional natural gas generation, alongside other sources, to meet the demands of a rapidly growing Georgia, the company is working to protect customers from future fuel price volatility by locking in supply and pricing today – a strategic planning process known as “hedging.”  Fuel charges are considered a pass-through cost for the company, with Georgia Power earning no profits on fuel costs.

Georgia Power works every day to ensure safe, efficient and timely response to severe weather including hurricanes, tornadoes, ice storms and more. Costs to repair damage and restore electricity are recovered through regular proceedings at the Georgia PSC, with the company managing a fluctuating reserve for storm costs. According to today’s filing, the company’s storm reserve is under-recovered by $912 million, which the company proposes recovering over the next four years. This includes nearly $800 million in damage from Hurricane Helene in 2024 – the most destructive storm in the company’s history with 12,200+ power poles, 1,500+ miles of power lines and nearly 5,000 transformers damaged or destroyed. Even with this historic damage, Georgia Power was able to restore power quickly to millions of customers in the days following the storm, earning national recognition for its response as among the best in the industry.

Today’s filings will be reviewed by the Georgia PSC through its established process, including input from various intervenors, in the coming months. If approved, expected fuel savings will be more than enough to offset storm costs resulting in a 1 percent rate decrease for the average retail customer, and savings of approximately $1.32 per month for the typical residential customer using an average of 1,000 kWh per month.