The electric bill for August just arrived, and something caught my eye in addition to the horrendous size of the amount due. The “fuel adjustment” — that is, the anticipated cost of the fuel needed to generate electricity — is 33 percent higher than the cost of the actual electricity itself.
Now, it’s possible that my electric company is the least efficient enterprise on the planet, and therefore spends 33 percent more in raw materials than it charges for the finished product. After all, this is an electric company, and although the industry is somewhat deregulated, it still gets to play these fuel games.
Even airlines haven’t been able to get away with a whopper like this, though. The fuel adjustment is little more than a guess by the electric company on how much it will pay for fuel, in this case, natural gas. You notice how they never seem to over estimate? When was the last time we had a fuel credit? What was the legislature thinking by allowing these guys to use natural gas as the benchmark anyway?
Oh, they also charge me $4 a month for the privilege of being their customer.
And people accuse the oil companies of price gouging….