Duke Energy Florida has announced that it will remove the storm cost recovery charge from customers’ bills one month earlier than previously planned. The charge was implemented to cover approximately $1.1 billion in costs resulting from the company’s response to hurricanes Debby, Helene, and Milton.
As a result of this change, residential customers can expect their monthly bills to decrease by about $33 per 1,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh) starting in February, compared to January rates. Commercial and industrial customers will also see reductions ranging between 9.6% and 15.8%, with the specific impact depending on individual usage and other factors.
Melissa Seixas, Duke Energy Florida state president, stated: “We understand all of our customers have been affected by the rising costs of living, many may be facing financial challenges, and some are even having to decide which bills they can afford to pay every month. It was important to us that our customers get this significant rate relief as soon as possible while we continue to deliver the safe, reliable power they expect and deserve.”
In March, an additional seasonal decrease of around $11 per 1,000 kWh will take effect for residential customers as part of Duke Energy Florida’s annual effort (March-November) to help lower energy costs during periods of higher use. By March, residential bills will be about $44 less than they were in January for the same level of electricity consumption.
The company has also made improvements at its natural gas plants that have saved customers $340 million in fuel costs; these savings are reflected as a $10 reduction on monthly bills. In addition, three new solar energy sites have contributed another $750 million in savings from displaced fuel costs. Duke Energy Florida has also passed on $65 million in Inflation Reduction Act tax credits to its customers—this results in at least a $2.50 savings per 1,000 kWh for residential users.
Duke Energy Florida encourages customers seeking more ways to save or manage their bills—including flexible payment plans—to visit duke-energy.com/SeasonalSavings for more information.
Duke Energy Florida is a subsidiary of Duke Energy and supplies electricity across a 13,000-square-mile area in Florida with an energy capacity of 12,300 megawatts serving about two million customers.
