In an Owensboro Municipal Utilites work session Thursday, officials presented a general overview of the fiscal year 2021 proposed budget to board members.
OMU projects $28.6 million net operating revenue, down 10.6 percent, for the consolidated electrical system, which is made up of electricity sold to Owensboro customers and to the wholesale market as well as telecommunications.
OMU estimates a 55.9 percent decrease in sales for megawatt-hours when comparing FY2020 to FY2021.
“There is a decrease as with the closing of the Elmer Smith Station,” said Sonya Dixon, OMU manager of public relations and communications. “We will no longer be selling our excess power produced by that plant into the market. The reduction is due to the loss of wholesale market sales.”
The board also saw an updated $22.3 million to decommission the Elmer Smith Station. Operation and maintenance adjustment of $427,000 was added for environmental remediation.
A proposed employee wage increase of 3 percent that amounts to $483,000 was also on the budget as was an annual $155,000 for community investments.
Dixon said there is a coronavirus impact on the budget but those numbers are yet to be determined. OMU plans to apply for reimbursement from FEMA and doesn’t anticipate a rate increase.
“We’ve been working with our customers all along trying to keep that cash flow going because that’s critical to the utility,” Dixon said. “We are not doing disconnections during this time period, but those bills are still going to be due because they’re for services that have been rendered by the public utility.”
The budget will be presented for approval on May 21 with possible adjustments and will be effective June 1.
