Electric customers will likely see bills edge up 47 cents

Oahu electric customers will likely see a 47 cent increase on their bills starting Monday as part of a $9 million rate adjustment Hawaiian Electric Co. plans to make.

HECO asked for a total of $12 million for its utilities on Oahu, Maui and Hawaii island.

The requested rate adjustment would be the lowest amount customer bills have increased because of the so-called "decoupling" adjustment since it started in 2011. In 2014, the Public Utilities Commission approved a $51 million adjustment for Oahu, which increased customer bills by $4.89.

HECO is allowed to apply for a decoupling adjustment each year with the state PUC.

The decoupling adjustment is intended to encourage development of renewable energy and energy conservation. The idea is to remove the incentive for the utility to increase the use of electricity. Decoupling is supposed to break the link between customer electricity usage and utility revenue.

Each year HECO can apply to the PUC for added revenue from customers to cover rising costs even if electricity use is going down.

The $9 million HECO requested will cover the cost of investments made to improve service and integrate more renewable energy, said Darren Pai HECO spokes­man.

"We know any increase isn’t easy for our customers," Pai said. "But it’s worth noting that rates have decreased considerably since last fall as a result of lower oil prices. And even with these increases due to decoupling, rates are still at their lowest point in about four years."

Electric bills on Oahu have been declining due to falling fuel prices. May marked the eighth straight month bills have dropped. The bill for a typical household using 500 kilowatt-hours on Oahu was $140.48 in May, down from $140.96 in April.

Despite the declining bills due to oil prices, Hawaii residents still pay the highest electricity rates in the country.

The latest figures provided by the U.S. Energy Information Administration show that Hawaii’s price of electricity is more than double the national average. Hawaii residents paid an average of 31.20 cents a kilowatt-hour in March; the national average was 12.35 cents.

The PUC is reviewing HECO’s decoupling request and will make a decision before Monday. The change would be effective from Monday through May of next year.

The PUC didn’t return a call seeking comment.