OG&E officials announced on Friday that customers will see a monthly increase to their bills effective immediately after a rate review by the Oklahoma Corporation Commission. Customers should except to see an average increase of 1.9% (or $2.07) to their monthly bills. The rates go into effect July 1st, 2022.
OG&E notified customers by sending out the following email today:
Dear Valued Customer,
At OG&E, we understand the surging inflation can be challenging on families and businesses alike and we remain committed to providing affordable, reliable and resilient service to our customers during these trying times. Ensuring a reliable power grid to serve the growing needs of our customers requires ongoing investments.
The costs of improving and maintaining the grid, power plants, and critical technology, ensuring we can meet your electricity demands, is the base rate portion of your monthly bill.
As we shared with you earlier this year, OG&E has a rate review currently underway with the Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC) that we were required to file by early 2022 based on a previous unrelated settlement and OCC order.
This current request addresses, in part, our continued efforts to execute our Grid Enhancement Plan to replace and upgrade aging infrastructure and install smarter and more automated technology platforms and communications systems. Together, these investments continue to improve the customer experience by reducing the number and duration of outages, while also modernizing the grid.
As a regulated utility, we appreciate the importance of the Oklahoma Corporation Commission’s transparent and inclusive rate review process. While our review is pending a decision by the Commission, state law allows utilities to implement interim rates 180 days after the rate review is filed.
Effective July 1, you will see an interim increase to your base rate of 1.9%, or approximately $2.07 per month, for the average residential customer, to, in part, help us recover the investments OG&E has made in the grid and other critical systems over the last three years. These rates are subject to refund or may be further adjusted once the commission issues its final order.
Overall, OG&E’s electric rates are among the lowest in the nation with residential rates around 30 percent below the national average. When adjusted for inflation, OG&E’s rates are even lower than they were 10 years ago. The last time OG&E’s base rates were increased was 2017, with a customer bill impact of less than $1 per month for the average residential customer.
Nevertheless, we understand the financial impact on our customers and remain committed to our long track record of providing affordable rates and program offerings to help customers manage both their monthly bill and energy usage. If you need payment assistance, please contact Customer Service at 405-272-9741 (Oklahoma City) or 800-272-9741 (all other areas).
Thank you for your business, we appreciate and understand that OG&E does more than energize the power grid, we energize life. If you have any questions, please visit oge.com/ratereview.