Coos-Curry Electric Cooperative customers will see an average 10.8% increase on their electric bill starting this month, after the utility's board approved a rate hike.
The cooperative estimates a typical residential customer using 1,000 kilowatt-hours a month will pay about $15 more. The bill would increase from about $140 to $155 a month.
The new rates took effect Sept. 1. The cooperative said in a statement that about a third of the increase comes from higher wholesale power costs, while the remaining two-thirds reflects higher costs to operate and maintain the cooperative’s electric system.
The utility buys its electricity from the Bonneville Power Administration, a federal agency that markets power from hydroelectric dams across the Northwest.
“We recognize that any increase in electric costs affects our members, and approving a rate adjustment is never a decision we take lightly,” CEO Brent Bischoff said in a statement.
The cooperative said equipment, materials, labor, insurance and financing have all become more expensive.
The nonprofit, member-owned cooperative commissioned an independent cost-of-service study before approving the new rates. The study examined the cost of serving customers under each rate schedule, current and projected operating costs, planned capital investments and how much revenue the utility needs.
The board also reviewed efforts to control costs, including competitively bidding major projects and equipment purchases, pursuing grants for infrastructure projects and prioritizing investments based on safety and reliability.
Coos-Curry Electric serves about 14,000 members in mainly rural communities along the southern Oregon coast.
