By Mike Tony, Charleston Gazette-Mail
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia state utility regulators have approved environmental compliance upgrades to keep three American Electric Power-controlled in-state coal-fired power plants federally compliant and operating through 2040.
The West Virginia Public Service Commission on Wednesday approved a request by Appalachian Power and Wheeling Power to implement and recover costs for the upgrades at the John Amos, Mountaineer and Mitchell coal-fired generating plants in Putnam, Mason and Marshall counties, respectively.
The commission also approved a surcharge for the companies to recover construction costs that will result in an increase of about 38 cents on monthly bills for the average residential customer using 1,000 kilowatts a month starting Sept. 1.
The commission’s order comes despite a ruling from Kentucky state utility regulators last month rejecting a request by Kentucky Power, another American Electric Power subsidiary and 50% owner of the Mitchell plant, to implement and recover costs for the upgrades at the 50-year-old facility near Moundsville…
