Electricity costs have risen throughout the country due to several factors, including rising natural gas prices. However, New England is especially susceptible to natural gas pricing volatility due to inadequate infrastructure to supply natural gas to the region. The region relies heavily on natural gas to fuel over 50% of its electric energy requirements. Locally, our power supply costs increased 23% in fiscal year 2022 and are projected to increase by another 23% in 2023.
Groton Utilities continues to do everything we can to absorb and mitigate these higher than normal wholesale electricity markets while maintaining overall fiscal stability. Unfortunately, we have once again reached a point where we can no longer absorb the increase in market costs.
Groton Utilities is very sensitive to any pricing adjustments but unfortunately, these sustained high energy costs will cause Groton Utilities to pass some of these additional costs through to our customers. Beginning January 1, 2023, customers will see an increase in the Purchased Power Adjustment (PPA) portion of their electric bill of $0.01602 kWh.
This will impact all customer classifications from residential, to commercial and industrial. All customers should prepare for higher-than-normal bills this winter. An average residential customer using 700 kWh of electricity per month could see an additional 9% on their bill, or approximately $11.21.
While the PPA has been adjusted to reflect current fuel costs, please be aware that the average Groton Utilities residential customer bill is still $29 less than the average Connecticut electric utility, making our average residential rate 17% less.
Groton Utilities will continue to monitor and review the cost of power and make appropriate adjustments accordingly.
Groton Utilities stresses that now, more than ever, customers need to do all they can to conserve energy to reduce their monthly utility bill. We encourage customers to visit the Residential Energy Conservation section of our website and discover all the different ways you can conserve energy and save money, such as scheduling a free Home Energy Audit and/or starting a home insulation project to reduce heating & cooling costs. Additionally, Groton Utilities is currently running a promotion on rebates for the purchase of Electric Vehicles, HVAC Mini-Splits, Hybrid Heat Pump Water Heaters and Smart Thermostats. Visit our Residential Energy Conservation Center and learn about all our current offerings.