Jan. 5—OG&E customers across Oklahoma may pay higher fees on their electric bills if the Oklahoma Corporation Commission approves a $332 million rate hike annually.

The rate hike means the average residential customer’s monthly bill will increase by approximately $19 per month.

The $19 change for residential customers follows a fuel cost adjustment OG&E made in November that lowered the average residential customers’ bill by $21 per month.

Electric companies have the option of implementing interim rates that could begin July 1, but the OCC must approve any final adjustments to rates, per a statement from OG&E.

Stillwater residents will not be affected, as the City receives its power from the Grand River Dam Authority and operates its own energy distribution center.

But Oklahoma State University and surrounding areas, such as Perkins, which rely on OG&E for power may see some difference in their monthly bill.

The News Press reached out to OSU for comment, but was unable to reach them before press time.

News of the possible rate hike had not yet reached the Perkins City Council offices, said City Manager Bob Ernst.

With a customer base of 821,000 in Oklahoma, OG&E is the largest electric utility in the state, with an interconnected transmission and distribution system spanning 30,000 square miles.

Christi Woodworth, OG&E’s vice president of marketing and communications, said in a statement that OG&E customers say reliable electricity is their top concern, and the company has poured significant investment into equipment and new technology to meet the growing demands and increase reliability.

She said according to FEMA statistics, Oklahoma ranks third nationally for “federally declared severe storms from 2000-2022.”

On Dec. 29, OG&E filed a rate review at the Oklahoma Corporation Commission, with the intent to support infrastructure investments made by OGE over the last two years — including hardening the grid and improving reliability.

“The majority of this rate review includes new technologies like grid automation that can reroute power during outages, new substation construction to support our growing service area, storm response and electric grid hardening to improve reliability for our customers and strengthen the grid against the extreme weather that impacts Oklahoma,” Woodworth said. “Customers experience fewer and shorter outages where these improvements were made, and we plan to deploy these upgrades across the rest of our system.”

The rate review includes a $60 annual increase in OG&E’s Silver Energy senior citizen discount, which follows the 30 percent increase for the 2022 discount implemented for low-income customers.

The rate review also includes major power plant improvement projects that will ensure OG&E can reliably produce power at all times, at any time and in any weather condition during the year. Additionally, resources will be available for tree trimming and vegetation growth management to better respond to customers’ requests and to reduce outages.

“Oklahoma’s economic growth remains on a strong trajectory, with business expansion and relocation driving new job creation and population growth for cities and towns all across the state,” Woodworth said. “That success translates to more customers for us to serve. The completed projects in this rate review include more than 5,000 new projects to ensure reliable electric service for new homes and businesses.

“Any change or increase in rates can be concerning for customers and we continue to work on affordability while ensuring improved reliability at the same time.”