(Atlantic) On Wednesday, the Atlantic City Council approved the Atlantic Municipal Utilities 2025 budget, including electric and water use rate increases.
At the meeting, Atlantic Municipal Utilities General Manager Steve Tjepkes explained that the electric rate increase is due to a 10-percent increase in purchased power costs. Tjepkes says this is the first time the electrical rates have increased in nine years. He says AMU has maintained steady rates over the past many years because of its ownership of the W/S#3 coal plant and 50 percent of power contracts. Twenty percent of the power supply is renewable energy.
Tjepkes says they are implementing an average overall increase of about 5 percent across all rate classes beginning February 1, 2025. According to an American Public Power Association Report of 181 electric utilities operating in the state of Iowa, AMU’s electric rates are the second lowest of all 181 utilities. AMU provides electric service to about 4,000 residential and commercial customers, the City of Atlantic, and another 675 customers in surrounding rural areas. Tjepkes says AMU plans a 10-percent overall water rate increase next year. The average residential water bill is almost $25.00, so a percent increase will be around $2.50/month for the average customer.
This past year, AMU was awarded a National Excellence in Reliability award for its reliable electric service compared to electric companies nationwide, with an average service availability rate exceeding 99.9 percent.
