IS IT TRUE? September 20, 2011
IS IT TRUE that the big news but not necessarily surprising news is that Vectren has filed a request with the Indiana Utility Regulation Commission asking for yet another rate increase?…that it was just a month or so ago that the last Vectren rate increase went into effect?…that Vectren already charges their customer base the highest rate in the State of Indiana by about a 50% margin and higher than Henderson, KY by a 212% margin?…that like a spoiled child that is catered too regularly Vectren is now asking the IURC to let them have a new toy and they want their customers to pay for it?…that Vectren also has asked the IURC to guarantee them a 7.29% rate of return with the ability to raise their fee annually if they didn’t quite get their forecast right the first time?
IS IT TRUE that the shiny new toy in this case is an upgrade to their turbines in the Posey County plant that saves coal but costs $32 Million?…that the coal that is saved is coal that Vectren for the most part already owns?…that Vectren’s right hand pays Vectren’s left hand for their coal so saving this coal completely benefits Vectren and Vectren alone?…that the rates that we already pay were calculated based on the equipment that they already have?…that we have been told time and time again that Vectren is ahead of the game with EPA mandated equipment and that Vectren is compliant with EPA standards?…that Vectren continually tells us that the price differences that exist now will vaporize when the rest of the country catches up with them?…that assuming that is all true there should be no EPA driven reason to consider these turbine upgrades?…that this shiny new toy is a WANT as opposed to a NEED?
IS IT TRUE that the fee that Vectren has asked for is a seemingly harmless $1.08 per month per customer?…that based on the 141,000 customer base this fee will bring Vectren a revenue increase of $1.83 Million per year?…that a guarantee of a 7.29% profit on an investment of $32 Million will “GUARANTEE†Vectren additional profits of $2.33 Million per year?…that we guess the difference in those amounts must be from burning less of their own coal?…that burning less of their own coal is pretty much the same thing as paying them to keep their money in the bank?…that the net result of this request is that the people of SW Indiana send an additional $1.83 Million to Vectren that makes $2.33 Million in profits and keeps the coal that they would have burned in their reserves?…that at Vectren’s current price to earnings ratio of 18.64 that the value of Vectren’ outstanding shares will increase by $43.43 Million?
IS IT TRUE that this request if granted will enrich the Vectren Corporation’s net value by $43.4 Million and that money will be coming via direct transfer of wealth from the working people of SW Indiana?…that in a part of the country where families already work 9 hours per month (2nd highest in Memphis Power study of 50 utilities) to pay for electricity, where we have to squeeze police cars to 10 year lives, where Fire Engines are cannibalized for parts, potholes go unfilled, parks can’t even be mowed, and the president of the Evansville City Council made a serious statement about removing the bulbs from street lights to save money, THIS IS NOT AN APPROPRIATE TIME TO FORCE THE PEOPLE OF SW INDIANA TO BUY VECTREN A NEW TOY?
IS IT TRUE that the City of Evansville is putting the finishing touches on a $128 Million Arena yet our sewer system is under EPA order to spend about $500 Million?…that the message this sends to the world is that we can play ball in luxury but can’t relieve ourselves without concern for walking through the grass?…that these kinds of decisions tell the world about misplaced priorities?…that buying spinner rims for a car that barely runs is a poor decision?…that buying a Rolls Royce when there is a leak in the trailer roof is a poor decision?…that buying Vectren a new toy with the peoples forced contribution is the same kind of decision as buying those spinner rims in this economy?…that it is time for the BUCK TO STOP even if it is just a BUCK A MONTH that we are being asked for?…that BUCK may be bus fare to work for some poor soul whose car won’t start and who can’t afford to pay their Vectren bill?
“Vectren” turns head and spits;
“A cancer on the region.”
“It is killing the host upon which it feeds.”
“Still wonder why Southwest Indiana withers?”
“Vectren” turns head and spits. …
Is Vectren getting advice from the ERC? That may explain Vectren’s really dumb request for rate increase.
Anyone who’s truly fed up with Vectren can buy shares of their stock, attend the annual shareholder’s meeting, and give them an earful. If you can’t afford the $25 to $30 price for one share, write back-to-back letters to their regulatory authority and rock on to your heart’s content. Until then you can continue to shriek bloody murder in the darkness.
Have it your way.
$ 1.83 Million bucks merits a formal rate increase ? Those fat cats at Vectren spend that much each month on shoe maintenance. If those executives could scrimp and save, and manage to get by on $ 600,000 per year each man , they will EASILY find this much needed $ 1.83 Million, with “change back from your dollar” !
I believe that Vectren owns a fleet of private planes. The Governor of Kentucky cut his staffs pay by 10% and sold off some planes to survive these tough times. How about Vectren sells the darn planes, acres and acres of land they own, or some other expensive baubles that they seem to collect.
Hey CCO, why don’t you go down to Vectren and count the BMW’s and Benz’s in the parking lot.
How many billboards, TV commercials, and shiny inserts do they spend our money on? What does a monopoly need with expensive advertising? Just cut it out. I bet they spend more than $2 Million a year of advertising to a captured market.
Do our elected officials even have enough sense to see how this company wastes money and then talks from both sides of their mouth?
Any elected official that does not vocally oppose this request is not worthy of a single vote starting with the City of Evansville election this year.
Come on Davis, Come on Winnecke, speak up for the people of the town that you want to be mayor of.
CCO: are you now referring to Vectren as “The Spinners” ? I love that Vectren song “Could It Be I’m Falling In Love” ! Maybe they could give away a free single to anyone who sells off their assets in order to pay these bloated bills ?
Adds insult to injury. Does anyone know the legal process for challenging these extreme rates ? If this community forced a referendum for the EVSC expansion, what rights (if any) do citizens have in taking on a monopoly ? I.e., what’s the first step ? What would citizens in EVV have to do in order to buy electricity from HMPL, Duke, IPL or any other ‘neighboring’ producers ?
The Biscuit
yes Vectren does own a private plane, not a fleet of them.
you will soon be treated to a new Vectren commercial expounding on how green they are. They had a very hard time finding 2 union eployees to take part in that travesty.
If you drive around the tristate and count the plumes coming out of the stacks at Culley and AB Brown power plants you will have come up with one for the last couple of weeks. This unit along with their half of Warrick unit 4 gives them a load of about 400 Mw, qhich is not nearly enough. This leads me to suspect that clean and green Vectren is buying power from cheaper and dirtier plants and selling it to us. Are they giving us a break? Hell no.
The one unit at AB Brown is running because it is heading for a new consecutive days record. This record started under then plant manager Wayne Games who is now VP of power production and has some control over what runs and what doesn’t. Culley 3 would be a more economical choice as they already have the dense packs installed but that would break Mr Games recoord.
Among Vectren subsidiaries that service the power plants are Air Quality Services (emission monitoring) and Vectren Fuels which supplies second rate coal at first rate prices, VVC can charge itself what it wants from both businesses and stick it on the rate cases.
Vectren also owns a company called Energy Systems Group which installs energy saving devices in schools, hospitals, and businesses, They don’t get paid until the customer saves money and they are paid completely from those savinngs. Let them install the dense packs and then Vectren can pay itself from the savings.
When to put your hand over your wallet:
When the company mentions “Green”.
When the company has a name created from the syllables of two words(eg Solyndra).
When they are “in partnership” with government.
How much is Vectren spending keeping ex-government officials on the payroll? Word is that our former sheriff is making $300,000 per year to lobby people on Vectren’s behalf.
How much does Vectren and it’s upper management spend lining the coffers of candidates for office? We have seen how they greased the Weinzapfel for Mayor campaign that never happened.
It will be very interesting to see just how much money they have given to Mr. Davis and Mr. Winnecke. How many boards have these two candidates sat on that are full of Vectren officers? Birds of a feather flock together.
Company rumor has it that Weinzapfel will be officially on the payroll early next year
Henry,
Are you saying that he is unofficially on the payroll now ?
wouldn’t surprise me with all the ERC meetings in the Crystal Palace
What company? Vectren or City Centre Properties?
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