DTE gets $30.5M rate increase approved by Michigan Public Service Commission

SOUTHFIELD, Mich. (FOX 2) - DTE Energy, the largest energy provided in the state of Michigan, has been approved of a $30.5 million rate increase that will go into effect on the Friday after Thanksgiving.

The Michigan Public Service Commission approved a $30.5 rate increase for DTE on Friday, which was 10% of what the company had asked for when it sought a $388 million rate increase in January.

Throughout the summer and fall, DTE was taken to task for the rate increase as hundreds of thousands of consumers lost power again this year during storms. Included among those who criticized DTE was the commission's chairman, Dan Scripps. In October, Scripps said that DTE and Consumer's Energy system hasn't changed much in a decade.

"The challenge is over the last decade we’ve seen this time and again, and each time we’ve opened an investigation, offered directives and tried to move for improvements," said Scripps. "And yet here we are in 2022 and the system is essentially the same as it was 10 years ago."

The rate increase will ultimately raise the cost about $0.71 (roughly 0.78%) for each residential customer who uses 500 kilowatt hours of electricity each month.

The MPSC said it came to this final amount based on energy usage in the state in 2020 and 2021. The commission says residential customer electric use surged in 2020 and increased again last year, even though DTE projected that usage would decrease.

In October, MPSC ordered an audit into DTE and Consumers to determine how they address power outages and downed wires. The results of that audit have not been made public.