State commission weighing settlement proposal in Dominion Energy rate hike case

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WCBD)- Dominion Energy is awaiting key approval from state regulators to raise electric rates for thousands of South Carolina customers.

Testimony to the Public Service Commission stretched into its second day as commissioners weighed whether to approve a settlement between the utility company and intervening parties.

Dominion Energy filed a request in March to raise its rates by 14.21%, the first base rate increase in nearly four years. It would have increased the average customer’s bill by about $19 a month.

The company said an increase was needed to help with future service and operation costs, citing the addition of approximately 40,000 new electric customers since 2019.

“As a responsible energy company with rates lower than the national average, we must invest money and recover the rising costs needed to keep our plants running, our system reliable and our grid secure – all while doing our part to help make South Carolina a place where people want to live and work,” Dominion Energy’s Media Relations Director, Rhonda Maree O’Banion, said in a statement.

However, several parties intervened on behalf of residential customers and small businesses in opposition to the proposed rate hike.

After weeks of public hearings across the state, a settlement was reached.

Under the agreement, the Southern Environmental Law Center said customers would now see an increase of about $15 per month, a few dollars less than the original proposal.

Leaders with Dominion Energy said the agreed-upon rate will allow them to recover some of the rising cost of providing power while also listening to its customers’ concerns.

If approved, the new rates would go into effect in September.

Testimony is scheduled to resume at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday.

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