Empire District files for Mo. electric rate increase

Joplin-based Empire District Electric Co. (NYSE: EDE) filed an electric rate increase with the Missouri Public Service Commission to bring in additional annual revenue of roughly $24.3 million.

The funding would primarily be used to cover costs associated with an air quality control system at the company's power plant in Asbury, located about 15 miles northwest of Joplin, according to a news release.

If approved, Empire District's Missouri residential customers using 1,000 kilowatt hours a month would see an increase of about $9.87 on their monthly bills. Empire District serves some 217,000 customers in Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Missouri, including Greene County.

"The AQCS we are installing at the Asbury power plant carries a cost of between $112 and $130 million and includes a scrubber, fabric filter and powder-activated carbon injection system," Empire District President and CEO Brad Beecher said in the release. "This will allow the plant to meet the Environmental Protection Agency rules on air quality, namely the (Mercury and Air Toxics Standards)."

Empire District also is seeking a continuation of its fuel adjustment clause, which allows the company to adjust customers' bills twice a year - on June 1 and Dec. 1 - based on the cost of fuel to generate electricity, according to the release.[[In-content Ad]]