Take Action! Tell WV PSC not to bail out FirstEnergy at ratepayers' expense

1. Sign the petition

2. Submit a letter of comment to the PSC: online here,or mail to:  
       Sandra Squire, Executive Secretary
       Public Service Commission of WV
       201 Brooks St
       Charleston, WV 25301
Be sure to reference Case No. 12-1571 in your comments for them to be included in Harrison Plant transfer case. A sample letter is available here.  Comments must be submitted before May 29th.

3. Submit a letter to the editor of your local paper.  Typically these should be 200-300 words. A sample letter to the editor is available here.

4. Come to the public hearing: May 29th at 9:30am at the Public Service Commission (201 Brooks St., Charleston, WV)

More background here.  Or download our factsheet.

Talking Points:

  • The PSC needs to make energy efficiency investment a priority when evaluating these kinds of projects. It’s just common sense that we should try to reduce our energy needs first before we require WV rate payers to pay for any new power plant capacity.

  • The PSC needs to put WV first. WV rate payers should not be taking on new rate increases so that an Ohio-based company can shift ownership of its power plants from state to state to increase profits.

  • This case offers the PSC a real opportunity to move WV’s power companies away from the financial risks of being overly dependent on a single fuel source.

  • FirstEnergy has inflated the cost of the Harrison Power Station to twice its previous book value. If the PSC does allow some portion of the plant to be sold to WV rate payers, the PSC needs to make sure that the sale price of the plant is reduced to its real book value.

  • Mon Power did not seriously evaluate many possible alternatives to this coal plant; instead, they presented a self-serving analysis that justified their decision to purchase this plant to bail out their parent company.

  • The PSC should require the power companies to issue a request for proposals to seek out other ways of meeting their capacity shortages, rather than accepting the companies' analysis that purchasing a power plant from an affiliated company is the best option for ratepayers.

  • FirstEnergy's proposal did not evaluate expanding energy efficiency and demand-side management. Nationally, investments in energy efficiency cost an average of 3 cents per kWh saved, compared to 7.4 cents per kWh for energy generated by the Harrison plant.