ST. LOUIS – The Missouri Public Service Commission has approved a plan to increase rates for more than a million Ameren Missouri customers, starting this summer.
On Wednesday, the Public Service Commission announced that it approved two agreements to set new rates for the utility company. This moves follows a request filed by Ameren Missouri last year.
The approved increase will raise around $355 million more in annual revenue for Ameren Missouri, nearly $91 million less than the utility initially requested, according to the Public Service Commission.
The change is expected to increase bills by nearly $14 per month for the average St. Louis-area household, according to FOX 2’s news partners at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The rate increases are scheduled to take effect in June.
Ameren proposed the rate hike last summer, citing the need to ensure cleaner electricity, strengthen grids, and recover costs from major electric system upgrades. Key components of the plan include power line upgrades, new smart technology substations, and improvements to utility poles to better withstand severe weather.
The approved rates follow a series of public hearing and come months after Ameren Missouri updated its preferred resource plan, a roadmap the company says will help expend renewable energy resources while maintaining reliability and affordability.
Ameren Missouri serves around 1.3 million customers across 60 counties and more than 500 communities, including much of the St. Louis metropolitan area.