Residential electric rates on Oahu hit a record high in November for the third time in four months, boosting the typical monthly bill to $215.81, Hawaiian Electric Co. reported Wednesday.
RISING RATES
Residential electric rates have been climbing steadily on Oahu over the past two years in large part because of the rising price of oil, which is used to generate about 75 percent of the state’s electricity. |
The state’s largest electric utility attributed the increase to higher fuel costs, which account for about 60 percent of residential bills on Oahu.
The 34.6 cents per kilowatt-hour charged by HECO this month broke last month’s record of 33.10 cents per kilowatt-hour. The increase boosted the bill for a household using 600 kilowatt-hours by $8.41 from October to November.
Residential rates on Oahu have risen more than 50 percent during the past two years.
"Unfortunately as we’ve seen recently, higher fuel costs have resulted in higher electricity bills for our customers," HECO spokesman Darren Pai said. "It provides more evidence that we need to continue efforts to reduce our dependence on oil and to make more use of clean energy," Pai said.
Electric rates also rose in November on Maui and Hawaii island, but fell in Kauai County. HECO operates Maui Electric Co. in Maui County and Hawaii Electric Light Co. in Hawaii County. Electricity on Kauai is provided by the Kauai Island Utility Cooperative.
About 75 percent of the electricity generated by HECO and its subsidiaries last year came from the burning of petroleum-based fuels. HECO and its subsidiaries spent $900 million on fuel oil last year, up 34 percent from $672 million in 2009, the company said in its latest annual report.
The bulk of the fuel burned by the HECO companies is low-sulfur fuel oil, or LSFO. The companies also burn medium-sulfur fuel oil (MSFO), diesel and biodiesel. All fuels but the biodiesel are refined in Hawaii from imported crude. MSFO is generally the least costly fuel, followed by LSFO, diesel and biodiesel, HECO said in its most recent annual report.
HECO said 99 percent of the fuel it burned on Oahu last year was LSFO and the remaining 1 percent was diesel and biodiesel. HECO’s cost for fuel oil on Oahu averaged $85.49 a barrel last year, up from $60.90 a barrel in 2009.
At MECO, diesel and biodiesel accounted for 76 percent of the fuel burned, with MSFO making up 24 percent. MECO’s average fuel cost was $95.17 a barrel last year compared with $73.54 a barrel in 2009.
The fuel mix at HELCO was 58 percent MSFO and 42 percent diesel. HELCO’s average fuel cost rose to $89.33 a barrel last year from $68.28 in 2009.
The residential electric bill in Maui County rose to 36.8 cents per kilowatt-hour in November from 35.6 cents in October. The typical bill rose to $228.74 from $221.41.
On Hawaii island, the residential rate rose to 42 cents this month from 41.2 cents in October, boosting the typical bill to $263.44 from $258.47.
Members of KIUC are paying 40.38 cents a kilowatt-hour in November, down from 41.94 cents last month.
