Public systems provide consumers lower-cost power

Journal Article · Thu Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1976 · Public Power; (United States)

OSTI ID:7132014

Latest official figures demonstrate once again that the consumer-owners of the Nation's local publicly owned electric utilities continue to enjoy significantly lower electric rates than their neighbors served by private power companies. Federal Power Commission statistics from 1946 to 1974 show that the publicly owned segment of the pluralistic electric utility industry has been the leader in providing consumers with lower cost electricity. The Commission's statistics for 1974 cover 215 private power companies and 511 local publicly owned electric utilities. The local public power data do not include rural electric cooperatives, Federal power operations, or the Niagara and St. Lawrence projects of the Power Authority of the State of New York. In 1974, the average residential consumer on a local public power system used 29.8 percent more electricity than the average residential customer of the private power companies--9,797 kWh to 7,550 kWh. But the public power consumer paid 18.5 percent less on the average for his 29.8 percent greater annual consumption--$190.54 to $233.85. In 1974, the average commercial or industrial customer of a private power company used 17.6 percent more power than the average commercial or industrial user served by a local public power system (121,112 kWh to 102,974 kWh). But his annual bill was 56.8 percent more ($2,655.04 to $1,693.43). (MCW)

• OSTI ID: 7132014
• Journal Information: Public Power; (United States), Journal Name: Public Power; (United States) Vol. 34:4; ISSN PUPOA
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
290200 -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Economics & Sociology
296000* -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Electric Power
CHARGES
COST
DATA COMPILATION
ECONOMICS
ELECTRIC POWER
ENERGY CONSUMPTION
FEDERAL POWER COMMISSION
MATHEMATICS
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
POWER
POWER DEMAND
PUBLIC UTILITIES
STATISTICS
US ORGANIZATIONS