FLORENCE, Alabama — Residents in Memphis and throughout the Mid-South might soon be paying more for utilities.
The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), which provides energy to multiple state and municipal utilities, including MLGW, approved a 5.25 percent increase to its base energy rate beginning in October, 2024, despite reporting more than $300 million in profits from the previous year.
The unanimous vote took place Thursday at a board meeting in Florence, Alabama.
The rate increase is expected to generate more than $900 million in additional revenue for the energy provider, paired with more than $300 million in cost saving efforts.
TVA argues the impact of the increase will be lessened by lower costs of coal, natural gas and other fuels the authority uses to power its facilities, but most residents could see an average of $4 increase to their electric bill.
No publicly-available documents exist explaining the need for the increase, but during the board meeting, TVA leaders said the revenue generated by the increase would go towards operation and maintenance costs.
The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy criticized the move, saying there wasn't enough information going to the public from the public utility.
“Only in an Orwellian world of misinformation do we see our nation’s largest 'public' power utility pass a massive rate increase while providing the public the least amount of information compared to 'private' utilities," said Stephen A. Smith, the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy's executive director. "It’s highly unusual for a utility the size of TVA to issue a rate increase with zero independent review. This is a broken process, and every ratepayer in the Tennessee Valley is literally paying the price.”
We reached out to MLGW, who recently raised local utility rates by 12%, for comment and are awaiting their reply.