09/14/2022 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 09/14/2022 10:45
News Center > Operation Bill Assist: Entergy Mississippi pledges $3.2M to help customers
09/14/2022
Bill payment help, energy-efficiency tools and more on tap
JACKSON, Miss. -Entergy Mississippi has announced a $3.2-million pledge, funded by its shareholders, to help customers with high bills brought on primarily by high natural gas prices. While the effort will apply to all residential customers, it will focus mainly on helping those with low to moderate incomes.
More than half of the power Entergy Mississippi generates comes from natural gas, and the cost to buy this fuel has more than doubled in the last year. These fuel costs are passed through to customers with no profit to the company. However, these persistent high natural gas prices are expected to affect customer bills later this year and into the next.
"We not only want to alert our customers ahead of time when we see factors that can affect their bills, we also want to give them the help and tools they need to prepare for those bills," said Haley Fisackerly, Entergy Mississippi president and CEO.
Entergy announced four initiatives designed to help customers:
"As part of a settlement, we worked with the Mississippi Public Service commissioners to get bill payment relief in the form of an $80 rebate to all customers in September and a $15 per 1,000-kilowatt benefit toward their bill through next year," said Fisackerly. "Now we're working with them again, and with our community partners, to expand on that effort and help Mississippians get additional relief."
Fisackerly said the company is also addressing the natural gas crisis by taking steps to limit its use of natural gas.
"We are investing in Grand Gulf Nuclear Station's low-cost power and incorporating more renewable energy into our generation portfolio," he said. "An example of that is the recently-completed Sunflower Solar Station in the Mississippi delta."
All Entergy charitable contributions come from shareholder profit, not from customers. No costs associated with Entergy charitable contributions are passed through to customers.
The company will share more details about the initiatives as it rolls each one out in the coming weeks. Learn more at entergy.com/answers and entergy.com/billhelp.
QUOTES:
"During a time of rising costs from every direction, the Mississippi Public Service Commission and our regulated utilities are working closely to keep energy bills as low as possible," Chairman Dane Maxwell said. "I appreciate the efforts of stakeholders at Entergy Mississippi for making this type of investment and commitment to help customers with high bills."
"The Mississippi Public Service Commission remains committed to ensuring our regulated utilities provide affordable power to Mississippi consumers," said Commissioner Brent Bailey, Central District. "We appreciate Entergy Mississippi's efforts to provide the help and tools needed for their customers to lower their energy bills and put more money back in their pockets."
About Entergy Mississippi
Entergy Mississippi, LLC provides electricity to approximately 456,000 customers in 45 counties. Entergy Mississippi is a subsidiary of Entergy Corporation, an integrated energy company engaged in electric power production, transmission and retail distribution operations. Entergy delivers electricity to 3 million utility customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. Entergy owns and operates one of the cleanest large-scale U.S. power generating fleets with approximately 30,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity, including 7,000 megawatts of nuclear power. Headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana, Entergy has annual revenues of $10 billion and approximately 12,500 employees.
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