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Rise in fuel prices results in FAC increase
With the increase in the price of fuel follows an increase in the power utility bill of CNMI customers, effective April 1, 2021.
The current Fuel Adjustment Charge rate of the Commonwealth Utilities Corp., which is $0.16578 per kilowatt-hour, will increase to $0.17341 per kWh. This means residential customers who use 500 kWh of power per month will pay approximately $3.82 more in their monthly billing.
According to a CUC statement yesterday, it has been notified by its fuel supplier, Mobil Oil Mariana Islands Inc., that there has been an increase in the average international fuel oil prices that will affect the FAC.
The FAC is one of two components that make up the CUC electric kWh rate, which is used to purchase fuel. The second component is the CUC base rate, which is used to fund operations, projects, and debt service. This base rate has not been increased since April 17, 2014.
CUC is required, pursuant to an order previously issued by the Commonwealth Public Utilities Commission, to adjust (up or down) the FAC pass-through rate when the Mean of Plans Singapore monthly pricing equals or exceeds a 4.5% differential of the average per gallon cost of fuel used in the calculation of the current FAC rate.
CUC first instituted the Levelized Energy Adjustment Clause in 2009 to recover fuel and fuel related costs, a system also used by power providers in Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands. In May 2015, the CPUC authorized CUC to change the name of LEAC to FAC to provide customers a more accurate description of the electric rate. (PR)
