In all likelihood, your electric bill is running much higher than last summer. Two key factors are contributing to the increase – the incessant summer heat and the escalating price of natural gas used to produce electricity.

Last summer, the weather was much wetter and milder. Therefore, local energy use was much lower. Unfortunately, that’s not the case this year due to August-like heat that began in June, coupled with virtually no rainfall. Meanwhile, similar to what you have seen lately at the gasoline pump, the market price of natural gas has increased dramatically – almost 60 percent more than a year ago! The increase is reflected on your bill in the Peak Capacity Charge and the Fuel Adjustment Factor. 

What is CPS Energy doing to relieve some of the pressure being put on our customers’ bills? We’re using lower-cost fuels such as nuclear and coal as much as possible to generate electricity. However, the demand for summer cooling causes us to rely on natural gas to meet approximately 20 percent of our electrical-generation requirements.

What Can You Do? 
We encourage our customers to conscientiously follow energy-efficiency measures to reduce your energy use. See the chart included on this page that shows estimated monthly residential electric bills at various energy use levels starting at 1,000 kilowatt hours. Reduce your energy use by taking advantage of rebates that CPS Energy offers on energy-efficient products and cooling systems. Consider our Peak Saver programmable thermostat to manage your air conditioning use. Information on all of these topics can be found on our Web site by following the links below. If you’re having difficulty paying your CPS Energy bill, don’t wait – call us at (210) 353-2222. As temperatures have risen, so have the number of calls at our customer call center. We appreciate your patience and understanding as we try to answer thousands of calls every day.

We’re working 24 hours a day to continue to provide you with affordable, reliable power. We have ample energy to serve your needs. However, using it wisely will not only conserve energy, but reduce the impact of South Texas weather and fuel prices on your monthly bill.