New EPA Regulations Will Raise Electricity Rates by 27 to 50 Percent Ever since the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released its Clean Power Plan proposal this past June, a number of analyses have been conducted to try and determine the total cost of the regulation to electricity consumers. A report released this morning by Energy Ventures Analysis (EVA), however, goes a step further. In addition to the Clean Power Plan, EPA has recently finalized, proposed, or will soon propose a slew of environmental regulations affecting the electric power sector. These include new National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for ozone and particulate matter, the Cross State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) to address interstate transport of air pollution, Mercury and Air Toxic Standards (MATS), and regional haze regulations intended to reduce regional haze and improve visibility in national parks. These regulations have a cumulative effect of imposing considerable financial burdens on the electric power sector and, ultimately, consumers. Similarly, natural gas prices can also be expected to rise as a result of the increased demand created by the Clean Power Plan. Precisely how much electricity and gas prices will increase is exactly what EVA sought to determine.
Posted on: Fri, 21 Nov 2014 01:19:12 +0000