Residential customers of Puerto Rico's electric system will pay a record rate of 33.58 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) between October and December, after the Puerto Rico Energy Bureau (NEPR) on Wednesday approved most of the adjustment requested by LUMA Energy. The request was based on fuel costs reported by Genera PR and its fuel projections for the coming quarter.
The approved rate slightly exceeds the 33.4 cents per kWh average in effect in July 2022, previously considered the highest in history. An unsubsidized residential customer consuming 800 kWh a month will see a bill of $270.86 from October to December, compared with $228.59 the previous quarter, an additional $42.27. Compared with the 28.57 cents per kWh in effect from July to September, the approved adjustment is an increase of 5.01 cents, or 18.5%.
LUMA's September 15 filing had proposed an increase of 6.07 cents, about 21%, which would have raised the average cost to 34.64 cents per kWh. In its resolution and order, issued hours before the adjustment takes effect, the NEPR said fuel already consumed must be paid for and fuel needed to operate the system from October through December 2026 must be acquired.
It said that if those costs are not recovered in time, a cash shortfall results that affects the system's financial capacity to sustain generation and operational continuity.