Atmos Energy Corp. on Wednesday asked the Colorado Public Utilities Commission to approve an increase in its base rate, or facility charge.
The utility is requesting tiered increases, in June of this year and in July 2014 and July 2015. If the PUC approves the request, the average monthly bill for residential customers in Southwest Colorado will increase $3.54 on June 10; $1.69 on July 1, 2014; and $2.02 on July 1, 2015.
Atmos last received an increase in base revenue in 2008, company spokesman Brian Martens said.
The base charge pays for infrastructure maintenance and improvements, operational costs such as billing and distribution, and a return on investments.
Atmos by law can’t make a profit on the commodity, natural gas. Increases or decreases in the wholesale price of gas simply are passed along to customers.
“The commodity cost is a pass-through,” Martens said.
In 2012, Atmos customers got two reductions in the price of gas – 18 percent in April and 3 percent in October.
But the economy is such that the company can’t maintain its base rate, Martens said.
“The economy has been stagnant,” Martens said. “We’ve faced increased costs, specifically the cost of meeting federal guidelines for pipeline safety.”
If the base-rate increase is granted, commercial customers would see average monthly bill increases of 35 cents on June 10; $6.02 on July 1, 2014; and $7.10 on July 1, 2015.
The increases would augment Atmos’ statewide annual revenue by $4.1 million (4.8 percent) with this year’s increase, $2.9 million (3.3 percent) with the 2014 increase and $3.5 million (3.8 percent) with the 2015 hike.
“An increase is now necessary to keep pace with higher operational costs, to make considerable improvements in our infrastructure and to earn a fair return on our assets,” Gary Gregory, president of Atmos Energy’s Colorado-Kansas Division, said in a news release Wednesday.
Atmos Energy, headquartered in Dallas, serves about 110,000 natural-gas customers in 65 Colorado communities. Nationally, Atmos has more than 3 million customers in 1,400 communities from the Blue Ridge Mountains in the East to the Rocky Mountains.
daler@durangoherald.com
