Con Edison’s residential prices are the highest charged by any major US utility — and that’s OK with the state of New York.
Con Ed charged its electrical customers an average 26.99 cents for a kilowatt hour of electricity in 2013 — more than double the national average of 12.12 cents, new federal data show.
Con Ed’s rates have been frozen since 2013, and state regulators are negotiating to keep them frozen through the end of 2016.
But when the state Public Service Commission last week suspended talks about Con Ed’s request for a rate increase next January, it spared the utility a public inquiry. During such inquiries, rate payers have a chance to plead for lower prices and examine the utility’s spending.
“The status quo is better than a rate increase. But the status quo is a major problem,” said Bill Ferris, Albany lobbyist for AARP, which wants lower prices and a new state agency that would advocate for consumers on utility issues.
But PSC spokesman James Denn said freezing the rates through 2016 “would be a huge consumer benefit.”
Con Ed declined to comment on the plan to extend its current rates. Asked about its prices, company spokesman Allan Drury said: “We strive to balance the need to invest in our system with our obligation to manage costs.”