Increased electricity rates in Lincoln
LES is taking initiatives
Lincoln Energy Systems (LES) is pushing to increase the energy rate by 3.3 percent in 2025. The City Council will have a public hearing on Nov. 4 and will hold a vote on Nov. 18. In 2023, the system-wide cost increased by 4.8% and this year alone rose by 3.7%. Some residents are concerned that this will affect low-income households. The average household uses 1,000 kilowatt hours per month and will have an increase of $3.50 per month with the new energy increase.
From 2018 to 2022 the rate didn’t increase. In fact, the rate went down by 1.0% in 2022. While these increases may seem daunting as they contribute to the many expenses of a household, energy rates have stayed mostly consistent compared to other expenses affected by inflation. Nebraska has the 5th lowest price per kilowatt and Lincoln has lower rates in the state of Nebraska. Compared to 87 cities in the nation, Lincoln has the lowest residential price in the nation and comes in at the eleventh place for lowest commercial/industrial price.
LES has expenses that have contributed to the rising costs. Approximately, 45% goes to maintenance and operations of the electrical system; 29% goes toward paying off debt and construction projects; 21% goes to employees and 5% goes toward taxes.
One major concern other than the rising cost of energy is the use of coal by LES. Coal is known to be one of the worst forms of energy. A 10-gram uranium fuel pellet has as much power as 1 ton of coal. Not only is coal inefficient, it also emits large amounts of greenhouse gasses. Coal has naturally occurring radioactive material in small amounts. The amount of radiation released from coal plants differs on location and study, but coal plants are anywhere between ten to one hundred times more radioactive compared to nuclear power plants. Electric vehicles (EVs) and hybrids have seen an 80 percent increase by residents, but what is the point of an EV if coal is powering it?
While LES does not derive any energy from nuclear sources, 35 % of LES’s energy comes from natural gas. Thankfully, LES has been taking steps to provide cleaner energy to the residents of Lincoln. This includes the 34% of LES energy that comes from renewable energy sources such as wind, hydro, solar and landfill gasses. LES does have plans in the future to keep expanding this portfolio. From 2010 to 2023, carbon emissions have been reduced by 46%. LES has taken steps toward a cleaner future and will continue to do so. A 1.4% increase in energy rates doesn’t sound too bad based on the investment Lincoln has made into a cleaner future.
by Stuart Cuateco