RICHMOND — The State Corporation Commission (SCC) has approved a new fuel rate requested by Kentucky Utilities that will take effect on April 1. Kentucky Utilities does business in Virginia as Old Dominion Power Company.

The fuel rate is the portion of the electric bill that pays for the fuel used to generate electricity and reflects wholesale purchases and sales of power. The new fuel rate effective April 1 is 3.026 cents per kilowatt hour (¢/kWh). The current rate is 2.482 ¢/kWh.

The increase is driven, in large measure, by the expiration of the current large correction factor credit and under-recovery of fuel expenses over the past 12 months. The increase is offset to some degree by a forecasted reduction in the company’s expenses for coal.

For the average residential customer, the fuel rate increase means the monthly bill for 1,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity will increase approximately $5.44 from $76.67 to $82.11.

The fuel rate is reviewed annually by the Commission and re-set, as necessary, to reflect actual fuel expenses for the previous year and projected fuel expenses for the coming year.

Old Dominion Power Company serves approximately 30,000 customers in Wise, Russell, Scott, Dickenson and Lee counties in Southwest Virginia.

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Case Number PUE-2011-00019