Ohio Supreme Court: Utility can bill for saved energy

COLUMBUS (AP) — The Ohio Supreme Court says it’s legal for a subsidiary of American Electric Power to bill customers for a portion of the money the utility giant loses when people use less energy.

In a unanimous ruling today, the court sided with the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio over a May 2010 settlement with AEP. The pact laid out plans for AEP to meet state mandates for increasing energy efficiency and reducing peak demand.

The company proposed recouping about 15 cents of every dollar saved by Columbus Southern Power Co. customers through a surcharge on generation tacked onto electric bills.

Sam Randazzo, an attorney for the Industrial Energy Users-Ohio that appealed the plan, says the charge was terminated in 2010 for reasons unrelated to the suit. He says it may resurface.