by Talk Business & Politics staff (staff2@talkbusiness.net)

Nearly 125,000 Southwestern Electric Power Co. (SWEPCO) customers in western Arkansas will soon see an increase in their energy bills. The utility company reported Wednesday (June 29) that the Arkansas Public Service Commission (APSC) approved its rate request.

According to Shreveport, La.-based SWEPCO, the company’s western Arkansas customers using 1,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh) will see an increase of approximately $13.02 per month on their bill. The increase includes a 9.49% base rate increase, which makes up approximately $10.57 per month for an Arkansas residential customer using 1,000 kWh.

Base rates refer to the costs of building, maintaining and operating SWEPCO’s electric system, including power plants, transmission and distribution lines, and facilities to serve customers. Base rates do not include the fuel portion of the customer’s bill, which pays for fuel and purchased power and is passed through to customers with no profit to the company.

https://talkbusiness.net/2022/06/energy-bills-to-rise-for-swepco-customers-in-arkansas/

By Jacqueline Froelich

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, under the Biden Administration, has renewed efforts — greatly curtailed during the Trump administration — to reduce harmful industrial ozone-forming emissions from industry, including coal-powered energy facilities. The non-profit Sierra Club, which works in Arkansas, supports the rule. But Southwestern Electric Power Company says its Flint Creek Power Plant in Gentry, Benton County operates with some of the lowest permitted emissions limits of any coal-fueled generating unit in the country.

https://www.kuaf.com/show/ozarks-at-large/2022-03-29/epa-pressing-for-cross-state-air-pollution-control-rule

Energy bills to rise for SWEPCO customers in Arkansas

EPA Pressing for Cross-State Air Pollution Control Rule