Oahu electric rates continue to decline

Oil prices continue to lower Oahu’s electricity bills, as April marks the seventh consecutive month of declining bills for electric customers, with rates dropping 2 percent from March.

The bill for a typical household using 500 kilowatt-hours on Oahu will be $140.96 in April, according to Hawaiian Electric Co., the state’s largest utility provider with service to Oahu, Maui and Hawaii island.

The price per kilowatt-hour dropped to 26.1 cents this month, down from 26.7 cents in March.

The lower bills are due to the falling price of fuel, said Darren Pai, HECO spokesman.

"Lower fuels costs have contributed to lower effective rates," Pai said.

April marks the lowest electrical rate Oahu customers have paid since February 2011, when the rate was 26.4 cents per kilowatt-hour.

Along with the decreasing prices, the utility reported a decline in customer energy use. HECO now reports the typical customer as one who uses 500 kilowatt-hours a month, down from it previous definition of "typical" as 600 kilowatt-hours.

"For some time, we’ve been seeing energy use dropping as energy habits change," Pai said. "Customers are using more efficient lighting, appliances, and changing their behavior to use energy more efficiently. … Based on these trends, a more appropriate estimate of a typical residential household’s electricity use is about 500 kilowatt-hours a month."

Kaimuki resident Anneliese Scott, 60, said she has not noticed a significant decline with her bill but tries to be mindful of her energy use.

"I’m not particularly wasteful," Scott said. "Basically, what we use electricity for are the lights and radio. What I keep kicking myself for is not unplugging the gadgets around the house."

Hawaii has the highest electrical rates in the nation, in part because it depends on imported oil for most of its power. Other states use natural gas, hydro­electric power or nuclear power to keep costs low.

The latest figures provided by the U.S. Energy Information Administration show that Hawaii’s price of electricity is still almost three times the national average. Hawaii residents paid an average of 33.34 cents a kilowatt-hour in January, while the national average was 12.10 cents.

HECO gets the majority of its energy mix from oil imported mainly from Southeast Asia and the Middle East. The price of oil has fallen by more than half in the past six months.

On Wednesday the benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude closed at $55.94 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

HECO customers on neighbor islands will see a slight change in April bills.

Hawaii Electric Light Co.’s residential rate on Hawaii island decreased to 31.7 cents a kilowatt-hour from 32.8 cents in March. The bill for a household using 500 kilowatt-hours of electricity is $170.37.

Maui Electric Co. customers using 500 kilowatt-hours of electricity will see an increase in rates on their bill up 1 percent to 28.3 cents per kilowatt-hour from 28 cents in March. Maui customers will pay an average of $151.30.

The Kauai Island Utility Cooperative raised its rate to 33.1 cents a kilowatt-hour in April from 32.9 cents in March. The bill for a household using 500 kilowatt-hours of electricity, including a $10.58 customer base charge, is $176.08, up from $175.08.

Average monthly usage varies by island, but the 500-kilowatt-hour number is used to make comparisons. Monthly bills include the cost for kilowatt-hours used plus various other charges.

The typical customer bill on Lanai and Molokai is measured with electrical use at 400 kilowatt-hours due to lower energy use, Pai said.

"Usage has always been lower on Molokai and Lanai," Pai said.

Maui Electric Co. customers on Molokai using 400 kilowatt-hours of electricity will pay an average of $148.81 with effective rates of 34.8 cents per kilowatt-hour.

Customers on Lanai using 400 kilowatt-hours of electricity will pay the highest rates in the state at 37.6 cents per kilowatt-hour. The typical household bill on Lanai will be $160.22.