High Court Rules Against FirstEnergy Refunds

(Columbus, OH)   FirstEnergy customers hoping to get refunds from the utility are out of luck. 

The Ohio Supreme Court ruled Wednesday ruled the electric utility can't refund $43 million in fees collected for renewable energy purchases.

The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio had demanded the refunds in 2013 after claiming First Energy overcharged its customers, but the high court found nothing in the law to require them. In fact, some of the Ohio Supreme Court justices even went so far as to call the PUCO decision "unlawful retroactive rate-making" in its decision. 

The parent company of Toledo Edison goes before a state senate committee today, asking again for another special consumer fee to help offset operating costs at its nuclear power plants, such as Davis-Besse. Federal regulators already have rejected a request for such a "special fee."

First Energy lost another battle when respected credit rating agency Moody's downgraded the utility, over fears the electric company will default on a 100-million dollar bond payment due in April.


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