DTE Gas to impose $113.8 million rate hike plus annual increases

(The Center Square) – Customers of DTE Gas Co. will see their gas bill payments increase annually over the next three years after the Michigan Public Service Commission approved the utility’s $113.8 million rate hike on Thursday. 

DTE says the typical residential customer using 100 cubic feet of natural gas per month will see their monthly bills increase by $1.98, or 2.28%. A 66-cent surcharge will also be added starting on Nov. 21 and the amount will increase annually over the next three years, resulting in a total 7.04% increase, or $6.28 more billed per month, by 2029.

The surcharge is due to Michigan’s Infrastructure Recovery Mechanism, a regulatory mandate that requires electric utilities in the state to invest in energy-waste cutting infrastructure, such as replacing aging pipelines and residential gas meters to improve the reliability and integrity of gas distribution. 

“The commission's decision to slash DTE's requested rate hike by more than half will save consumers hundreds of millions of dollars on their utility bills,” Attorney General Dana Nessel, who helped negotiate the rate increases, said Friday. “This is money that families can now use for their own needs rather than seeing it spent on corporate jet travel for utility executives. My department remains committed to advocating for Michigan consumers and will continue to fight unnecessary and unceasing rate hikes from the utility corporations in this State.”  

The rate raise is approximately $46 million less than DTE’s original net increase request of $160 million, and 57% less than its $266 million request in January that reflected $106 million in rates from a previously approved surcharge.

DTE has requested at least one electric or gas rate hike every year for the past decade. DTE Gas obtained a $110 million rate increase in 2020 and an additional $84 million increase that took effect in 2022. 

DTE says the newest rate increase will primarily fund continued infrastructure investments to modernize natural gas transmission and distribution systems and increase operations and maintenance costs.

"Yesterday's final rate order from the Michigan Public Service Commission of $113.8 million, is lower than what we were expecting and may inhibit our ability to implement the work that will allow us to continue providing the level of service that our customers have come to depend on," DTE told The Center Square in an email. "We're currently assessing the rate order’s impact on the progress of our work, including our gas main renewal program - the upgrade of older cast iron pipes with modern, more durable materials that not only provide increased safety and reliability but also reduced emissions."

DTE Gas serves about $1.3 million customers in Michigan.