WASHINGTON – New data released today by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics confirmed the long-run trend of soaring electricity price increases for consumers. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for September measured annualized electricity services inflation at 15.5%, an increase of 0.4% over the month of August, outpacing overall CPI which increased by 8.2% on a 12-month basis.

In a statement, Paul Cicio, Chair of the Electricity Transmission Competition Coalition, said: “Electricity price inflation continues to outpace overall CPI increases, placing serious financial strain on homeowners and businesses each month when they pay their bills. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) must embrace electricity transmission competition if it wants to fulfill its mandate of providing affordable electricity to Americans.”

“The Inflation Reduction Act passed by Congress will lead to new energy projects, and with that, new transmission lines. If FERC rejects competition and reinstates a federal right of first refusal, hundreds of billions of dollars will be wasted needlessly, and net-zero will remain out of reach.”

Competitively bid electricity transmission projects have been shown to reduce costs to consumers by up to 40 percent according to The Brattle Group.[1] The U.S. will need to spend $2.1 trillion on transmission to reach its net zero goals by 2050 according to Princeton University meaning that electricity transmission competition could save as much as $840 billion for Americans.[2] The electricity price index continued to increase far outpacing the CPI, and the indices for gasoline and natural gas. Energy commodity prices continued to decrease and yet the savings are not being passed on to consumers, because monopoly incumbent utilities are absorbing the profits. These same incumbents are looking to block competition in order to increase their revenue at the cost of the consumer.

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About the Electricity Transmission Competition Coalition

The Electricity Transmission Competition Coalition (ETCC) is a broad-based, nation-wide coalition committed to increasing competition in America’s electricity transmission infrastructure. We advocate for common-sense policies and solutions that result in competitively priced transmission projects, which reduce energy costs for all ratepayers – from large manufacturers to residential consumers. The ETCC represents a diverse group of more than 70 companies and organizations from all 50 states, including manufacturing groups, retail electric consumers, state consumer advocates, public power representatives, think tanks, and non-incumbent transmission developers.

For more information, visit: www.electricitytransmissioncompetitioncoalition.org.

Press Contact:
Julian Graham
jgraham@signaldc.com