The PUC will have to decide whether an increase in your light bill is justified - because that's what BEL is asking for.
On Saturday March 31st., BEL asked the PUC for an increase of about two and a half cents per kilowatt hour. BEL says that from 2016 to 2017, the actual cost of power was $3.8 million higher than projected. And while the company absorbed that increase, the problem is that the cost of power to BEL is only going up. The company says that the cost of power for the 2017-2018 review period will be almost five million dollars more than what the PUC approved.
So, BEL is asking for an increase in the average electricity rate; they want it to increase from the 37 cents per kilowatt hour - where it is right now - to 39.5 cents per kilowatt hour.
The change in rates would go into effect on July first, 2018. But between now and then, the PUC will have a whole lot to say about it - and ultimately, they will decide. For BEL's part, the utility says the 37 cents per kilowatt hour is one of the lowest in the Central American and the Caribbean.
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