The Colorado Public Utilities Commission approved an increase in Xcel Energy’s gas rates on Tuesday that will increase the average home bill by $1.61 per month and the average commercial cost by $5.48 per month.
But the regulatory agency tempered a provision that allows Xcel to add a surcharge to all residential bills if less gas is used than expected.
The settlement will generate an additional $32.3 million in revenue for Xcel.
The commission altered a three-year pilot program proposed by Xcel to counter any decrease in customer gas usage with surcharges. Under the new plan, Xcel must shoulder the first 1.3 percent of decreased customer gas usage from the year before. If accumulative usage drops more than that, Xcel could add a surcharge to residential bills to recover the loss in sales.
Gas usage per customer has declined about 2.6 percent annually over the past five years, according to the PUC.
The new gas rates will be effective July 30, but any surcharge could first show up on bills Oct. 1, 2008.
The approved settlement also dropped Xcel’s rate of return from 10.5 percent to 10.25.
Xcel and public-utility employees must agree to the modifications before the settlement is finalized. The parties have 20 days to appeal after the commission issues its report, expected within two weeks.
Xcel is the largest provider of gas and electricity in Colorado, serving 1.2 million gas customers and 1.3 million electric customers.
Staff writer Zach Fox can be reached at 303-954-1755 or zfox@denverpost.com.
