If you're an Evergy customer, your bill might be higher, but your rate hasn't gone up. That's the word from the electricity provider for a large part of Kansas, including Salina.
According to information on the Evergy website, the cost you see on your electric bill varies based on how much electricity you use that month. Billing is by the kilowatt hour used, and according to Evergy, an average residential customer uses approximately 900 kilowatts per month. Extremely cold weather may result in higher electrical usage, especially if you use electricity to heat your home.
"We haven’t raised the price we’re charging you, meaning your electric rates didn’t go up, you just used more electricity, so your bill is higher," Evergy explained.
While Texas and its burgeoning rates have been in the news since last week's winter storm devastated the state, Evergy noted that its electric rates are "set very differently than in Texas." Electricity is regulated in Kansas and Missouri where Evergy's customers are, while Texas is a deregulated state.
"Some news stories have referred to potential dramatic increases in monthly bills. Customers of regulated utilities in Kansas and Missouri have some protection from those large increases, and get the benefits when fuel prices are lower, because the prices are based on actual costs and are regulated by the state commissions," Evergy explained.
In deregulated states such as Texas, electric companies pass fuel costs directly to customers immediately, so those customers may not be insulated from dramatic fluctuations in the wholesale fuel markets, Evergy noted.
Evergy pointed out, however, that while fuel prices do affect electric bills, the impact is not immediate for its customers.
"We recover our fuel and purchased power costs from customers through fuel clauses regulated by our state commission," Evergy explained. "Fuel prices customers pay through the fuel clause are adjusted periodically based on what was actually spent (this helps smooth the effect of market prices). These fuel clauses address the higher costs we incurred by looking at our actual costs and recovering them over a future period."
Evergy noted that customers could utilize programs such as its Average Payment Plan to help avoid larger seasonal fluctuations in bills due to extreme temperature changes and increased electrical use.