PSC Commissioner Dane Maxwell
PSC heard from Mississippi’s major utilities, industry experts on how the global market is affecting utility rates for customers in the state.
On Thursday, August 18, 2022, the Mississippi Public Service Commission (PSC) conducted an open meeting “work session” on the topic of Global Fuel Markets and its Impact on Utility Rates.
During the special meeting, Southern District Commissioner and Chairman Dane Maxwell along with his fellow Public Service Commissioners heard presentations from Mississippi’s major utilities and industry experts on how the global market is affecting utility rates for customers in the state.
Chairman Maxwell said that he called this work session in order to hear directly from Mississippi’s major utilities about where they stand financially and economically, and how global impacts like rising gas prices will affect Mississippians both today and moving forward.
“With everything going on in the country and globally, it is difficult to accurately forecast future costs, but we wanted to be proactive and prepared to work on keeping rates as low as possible,” Maxwell stated.
Presentations were given by representatives of Atmos Energy, CenterPoint Energy, Entergy Mississippi, Mississippi Power Company, and United Professionals Company on issues concerning:
- Current and future fuel and natural gas costs
- Fuel diversity
- Company plans and projections
Maxwell added that it is important for Mississippi to have diverse energy sources and he has encouraged the companies to keep all fuel options on the table to better their chances of levelized costs for Mississippi customers.
