September 11th, 2017 by WCBC Radio
The second of three public hearings concerning the proposed purchase of a coal-fired power plant by the Potomac Edison and Monongahela companies will be held next week in Martinsburg. The Herald Mail reports the hearing will be Monday at 7 p.m. in the first-floor municipal courtroom of Martinsburg City Hall at 232 N. Queen St., according to the West Virginia Public Service Commission. An evidentiary hearing is set for Sept. 26 to 28 at the Public Service Commission Office in Charleston.
A petition filed in March by the power companies indicates that residential and nonresidential utility customers would see greater rate stability and overall rate reductions of about 1 and 2.2 percent, respectively, as a result of the proposed acquisition of the Pleasants Power Station along the Ohio River for $195 million.
The average residential customer would see a reduction of about $1 per month, according to the petition.
But opponents criticize the deal as a "coal bailout" that utility customers ultimately will have to shoulder.
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