Florida Power & Light has submitted the cost of its rate increase request to state regulators and the bill so far is $4.9 million since work started on the case in 2008. That is over-budget about $1.3 million and includes $173,000 on business meals, $266,000 on hotels and lodging and $109,000 on airline travel. The case, which was expected to end in September, has been on overtime and may not even fiinish this week.
The company is asking to have customers pay only $3.6 million for the rate case — that's the amount it expected to spend when it filed the rate case in March. "Anything over that, we aren't asking to recover,'' said FPL spokesman Mayco Villafana.
The budgeted amount, however, includes $108,000 for business meals, $198,000 on hotels and lodging, $108,000 on airline travel and $1.2 million for legal services.
The company has gone over budget this way: $65,000 more than projected on business meals, $68,000 more on hotels and lodging, $1,000 more on airline travel, $21,500 more on vehicles and $$260,000 more in overtime expenses, above the $612,000 the company expected to spend.
Two costs the company had not calculated in March:
* $175,000 for an external review of its aviation flight logs, after Commissioner Nathan Skop sought the documents when FPL was asking for customers to pay for $15 million for its corporate jets and helicopters. On Wedneday, the company removed those expenses from the rate case.
* $7,000 on "books, subscriptions, incremental Lexus Nexus.
Related posts:
- PSC finishes rate case with no rate increase for Progress
- Wall Street puts pressure on FPL in aftermath of rate case
- FPL tries and fails to get investor’s gloomy report into rate case
- Regulators open debate on FPL rate case amid gloomy investor warnings
- On the hot seat, PSC chairman extends FPL rate case into January