TVA rate increase to take effect Saturday
For McMinnville Electric System customers, all meters read on and after Oct. 1 will reflect the TVA rate change. MES consumers will see an average increase of 6 percent for residential power usage.
A residential consumer using 1,000 kilowatts in a billing period will see an increase in their electric bill of $3.99. MES small commercial customers will see an increase of 5.8 percent and large commercial power users will experience an increase of 6.6 percent.
“Many of the 157 TVA power distributors are taking this opportunity to increase their power rates in addition to the rate change TVA is making,” said MES general manager Rodney Boyd. “MES is among the few distributors that will not be adding any additional charges to the new TVA rates. This will be a direct pass-through from our power supplier, TVA, to our customers. This should continue to position MES as one of the lowest cost providers of TVA power in the entire valley.”
When asked why McMinnville Electric System was not adding any additional cost to the TVA rate change Boyd said, “The generators installed by MES in 2001 are helping us keep our power cost below that of other TVA distributors. We are in turn passing that savings along to our customers.”
The last rate increase MES customers experienced was in 2003 when TVA increased the wholesale power rate to fund clean-air improvements.
“No one likes a rate increase, but sometimes that is business reality,” said Boyd. “On the other hand, the Board of Public Utilities is dedicated to keeping McMinnville Electric System a sound financial organization that supplies our city with dependable power. Our employees work hard every day to fulfill that mission by providing reliable electric service at the most economical rates possible. We will continue to make that a business priority.”