SWEPCO residential bills to rise by 23%, regulatory documents show
by January 23, 2026 5:19 pm 1,553 views
Southwestern Electric Power Co. (SWEPCO), a utility of Columbus, Ohio-based American Electric Power, received approval to increase residential customer bills by 23.28% or $17.50 per month, according to the company.
On Friday (Jan. 23), the Arkansas Public Service Commission approved the rate increase as proposed in the joint settlement agreement that was filed Nov. 7 in the case.
SWEPCO said the bill of an average residential customer will increase by $17.50 per month, under the settlement agreement. The increase was based on November fuel rates rather than those when SWEPCO filed for the rate increase in March.
According to the regulatory documents, 227 public comments were filed in the case, and all comments opposed the proposed rate increase and/or investments made by the company in its coal plants.
Still, case participants recommended the commission approve the settlement because it resolved some of their concerns, including SWEPCO’s request for a resource-retirement study from Southwest Power Pool to consider the early retirement of the coal-fired Flint Creek Power Plant in Gentry, that SWEPCO complete a confidential economic analysis of the plant annually, look to procure clean energy resources in Northwest Arkansas, and consider all available technologies in its next request for generation resources.
A SWEPCO participant affirmed that the system can operate within Southwest Power Pool’s guidelines without Flint Creek online but said “it’s still the company’s thought process” to retire the plant in 2038.
Another participant said ratepayers would likely face a higher rate increase amid litigation, according to the documents. The settlement will result in a “significantly reduced rate increase” compared to what SWEPCO had originally requested in March. The rate increase in the settlement is roughly half of the original increase.
The Sierra Club was one of the participants opposing the rate increase.
“While it’s nice that the commissioners recognized the public’s outrage at SWEPCO’s rate request, nice doesn’t pay the bills,” said Cameron Rackley, a Northwest Arkansas resident and organizing intern for the Sierra Club. “Ultimately it’s the decision that impacts our lives, not the rhetoric. Arkansans are paying attention, and we look forward to holding SWEPCO and the PSC accountable for planning to replace the expensive, polluting Flint Creek coal plant with cheaper, cleaner renewables that will allow our Natural State to thrive.”