Greg L. here from Atlanta. I've been digging through Georgia Power's Schedule GSA-2 tariff and the base rate seems reasonable at $0.08847/kWh for the first 1000 kWh block. But when I add up all the riders - Environmental Compliance Cost Recovery, Nuclear Construction Cost Recovery, Demand Side Management, and about six others - I'm seeing an effective rate closer to $0.12/kWh. Are there standard riders that always apply that aren't obvious from the main rate schedule? This is for a 150 kW peak demand commercial customer.
Hidden riders in Georgia Power tariffs - what am I missing?
Randy Dawson here. Georgia Power is notorious for their rider complexity - you're definitely on the right track looking beyond the base energy charge. The Environmental Compliance rider alone has been running about $0.025/kWh lately, and the Nuclear rider varies monthly based on Vogtle construction costs. Make sure you're also catching the Municipal Franchise Fee which can be 3-6% depending on your city, plus the Georgia PSC assessment fee. For Schedule GSA-2, you should also verify your customer is actually on the right schedule - sometimes GSA-1 or GSA-3 might be better depending on load factor. Download their current tariff book from the Georgia PSC website docket 29849 for the most recent rider adjustments.
Wanda K. from Greenville SC. We see similar issues with Duke Energy Carolinas - the base rate looks competitive until you pile on the fuel adjustment clause, renewable energy rider, grid improvement rider, and storm recovery fee. Last month our FAC was running $0.019/kWh above the base. Greg, are you also factoring in the demand charge tiers? Georgia Power typically has declining block demand charges where the first 30 kW might be $15/kW but drops to $8/kW after 100 kW.
Thanks Randy and Wanda. I found the Municipal Franchise Fee buried on page 47 of the tariff - Atlanta charges 4.5% which I completely missed. The demand charge structure is exactly as Wanda described, $15.18/kW for first 30 kW then $8.92/kW thereafter. My client's 150 kW peak gives them a blended demand rate of about $10.20/kW. Still working through the Nuclear Construction rider - it seems to change every month based on actual costs?
Steve B. from Louisville KY. The nuclear rider is typically adjusted monthly or quarterly based on carrying costs and actual construction expenditures. In Kentucky with our LG&E nuclear units, we see similar monthly volatility. Georgia's Vogtle units were massively over budget so those riders have been brutal. Check the PSC docket for the most recent rider adjustment - usually filed around the 15th of each month.
Nancy P. in Spokane WA. This thread is really helpful - we don't have nuclear riders here with Avista but our renewable energy surcharge has been climbing steadily. Greg, did you ever build that Excel model Randy mentioned? I'd love to see how you're tracking all these moving pieces month to month for client proposals.
Nancy, I've got a basic spreadsheet tracking the base rate, demand charges, and about 8 different riders with spaces for monthly updates. It's not pretty but it works. The key insight from Randy's advice was checking the PSC docket regularly - these riders change more often than I expected. My effective rate calculation went from $0.12 to $0.1342/kWh once I found all the hidden fees. Happy to share the template if others are interested.