Xcel Energy customers across most of the state are getting another chance to weigh in on a potential hike in their electric bills…
(Nex Xcel Rate Hike Request :35)
State regulators want the utility to justify why it needs millions of dollars more revenue, on top of already-record profits. Xcel wanted to increase electric rates by some 312 million dollars, which works out to about 7 dollars added on to the average residential customer’s bill. Then last month, Xcel made a deal with the state’s energy office and consumer advocates, for a much smaller increase, between 48 million and 97 million bucks. Now, they reportedly have to narrow down that range, to a single figure. Xcel started making its case to regulators at a hearing on Monday. There’s another hearing, that you can monitor on Zoom, coming up from 4 to 6 this afternoon.