Rhode Island Energy Requests 57 Percent Increase in Industrial Power Rates

Rhode Island Energy submitted a rate filing to the Rhode Island Public Utilities Commission on Tuesday, seeking approval for higher electricity prices for industrial customers in the coming winter.

The utility wants to charge 27.984 cents per kilowatt-hour for Last Resort Service in January 2027. This represents a sharp increase from the 17.851 cents approved for the same month in 2026.

The proposed rates apply to the Industrial Group, which includes rate classes G-32, B-32, and X-01. These are customers who do not purchase power from competitive suppliers or municipal aggregation programs.

RI Energy buys this default supply through competitive bidding. The company passes those costs directly to these customers. While residential and commercial default rates reset twice yearly, industrial rates are filed quarterly. This current filing covers usage from January 1, 2027, through March 31, 2027.

The proposed prices for the first quarter of 2027 are 27.984 cents for January, 24.846 cents for February, and 13.987 cents for March. The previous year saw rates of 17.851 cents, 16.909 cents, and 14.024 cents, respectively. The cost increase is concentrated in the first two months, while March remains slightly below the 2026 level.

Most industrial load in the state is not subject to these rates. A memo from the Division of Public Utilities and Carriers dated Sept. 8 noted that more than 90 percent of industrial load is served by the competitive market.

For the customers who remain on default supply, the financial impact is measurable. The filing includes a typical-bill table for a G-32 customer using 200 kilowatts and 40,000 kilowatt-hours monthly. This customer's monthly bill would rise from $12,866.19 to $15,197.71, an increase of $2,331.52.

The supply portion of that bill would grow from $6,670.67 to $8,908.93, an 18.1 percent increase. The January rate of 27.984 cents consists of a 24.299-cent base rate, a 0.295-cent administrative factor, a 1.786-cent adjustment factor, and a 1.604-cent renewable energy charge.

The base rate derives from a request for proposals issued on Sept. 11. RI Energy sought 100 percent of industrial default supply for the first quarter of 2027. The company stated the rates reflect executed contracts from that bidding process. It asked the commission to keep bid exhibits and transaction confirmations confidential under state public-records law.

The three-member commission, chaired by Ronald T. Gerwatowski with Commissioners Abigail Anthony and Karen M. Bradbury, will review the filing. The commission previously approved similar winter rates in a timeline that moved from filing in late October to approval in early December.

Last year's January industrial rate of 17.851 cents followed a volatile trend. Rates were 24.153 cents in 2022, 40.727 cents in 2023, 16.698 cents in 2024, and 14.653 cents in 2025. The Division of Public Utilities and Carriers noted in a previous review that these rates reflect wholesale market conditions rather than costs controlled by the utility.