NBU NEWS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 24, 2006
Contact: Gretchen Reuwer, NBU Communications Manager, (830) 629-8486

First reading on electric rate decrease passed by City Council

NEW BRAUNFELS—NBU electric customers could be benefiting from a rate decrease as early as July. The New Braunfels City Council passed the first reading of a recommended reduction in electric rates on Monday, May 22. If approved by the City Council at the next reading on June 5, the decrease will be reflected in the summer rates which are in effect from June through September.

The Small General Service class, for instance, will see an average decrease of 6.9% in rates while the Large General Service and VLP classes will benefit from average decreases of 1.3% and 10.8%, respectively. The recommendation also includes an average decrease of 1.9% in rates for the residential class. The cost of service study pointed to a need for an increase in the customer charge for several classes, including the residential customer class. Residential customers will pay a $14.50 customer charge per month as well as see a reduction in both summer and non-summer energy charges.

The current base rates for residential customers are $0.0745 during the summer months of June-September and $0.0617 during the winter months of October-May. The proposed decreases will drop these rates to $0.0679 in the summer and $0.0579 in the winter. A Power Cost Recovery Factor will be applied and adjust these rates up or down to compensate for the changing cost of power that NBU purchases and passes through to the customer.

“The monthly customer charge for residential, small general service, large general service and industrial customers is in place to recover some of NBU’s fixed customer costs,” NBU CEO Paula DiFonzo explains. “These are fixed costs—such as a portion of electric system facilities, meter reading, billing and services associated with serving the customer—that do not vary with kilowatt hour energy and are incurred regardless of how much energy is consumed by customers. NBU is able to reduce the subsidy needed from energy sales by charging these fixed costs in the customer charge.”

In addition to the overall rate reduction across all customer classes, NBU will also be unbundling the rates to enable customers to view all components of the bill, including the delivery charge (comprising the customer charge and the delivery charge) and the power charge. Unbundling the rates in this manner provides more transparency for customers.

NBU continues to emphasize the importance of conservation in helping to lower energy bills year round and offset these increases. Free energy audits are available to help customers identify areas in their homes and businesses where greater energy efficiency can be achieved. Customers are also encouraged to take advantage of the NBU Budget Billing Program and obtain free Energy Saver booklets at the Main Office. For more information about any of these programs and services, please call the NBU Customer Service Division at (830) 629-8400.