Louisiana Beauregard Electric Co-op Inc. (BECi) reached out to FEMA for funds to help in mitigating the unexpected $3.5 million increase in its monthly fuel bill.

“We’ve been informed those increased costs do not qualify,” said Kay Fox, VP marketing and member services.

Cleco Cajun claimed it had to charge BECi more because its transportation company couldn’t deliver. Low waters were the result of extreme weather conditions this past summer.

The fuel cost on members’ bills increased 55 percent, $3.413 cents per kWh, with an overall residential bill increase of 26 percent, according to Fox.

BECi  has requested a copy of the letter from Cleco Cajun’s transportation company outlining the unforeseeable circumstances that prevented them from fulfilling its contract. It also submitted questions to Cleco Cajun to substantiate the claim.

“At this time, we have not received any of the documents we requested,” Fox said.

The cooperative paid its December bill to Cleco Cajun under protest, which preserves its legal rights granted under contract.

Earlier this week U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy (R-Baton Rouge) announced Louisiana Beauregard Electric Co-op, Inc. (BECi) will receive $4,237, 756.57 from FEMA, but that money is marked for expenses incurred after the hurricanes. That money will go straight to the lender to repay a loan that BECi took to pay interest on the emergency hurricane restoration loans,” Fox said. “Total hurricane restoration costs were $96.4 million.”

BECi did not put a rider (extra cost) on customer bills as some other cooperatives and investor-owned utility companies have done to recover certain expenses.

Several state and local programs work with BECi to help members with paying their electric bill. The programs are LIHEAP, Allen Action Agency, Beauregard Council on Aging, Beauregard Community Action Association, Vernon Community Action Agency, Cenla Community Action, Assist Agency of Crowley and Calcasieu Office of Community Service.

One BECi customer posted on social media that no more help is available until March from LIHEAP.

To help customers, BECi is offering a fuel clause payment deferral plan for all members. Nothing is due on the increase associated with fuel cost until April At that point, the remaining obligation will be divided between eight months.

The company will know more about future prices when it receives its February bill from Cleco Cajun, Fox said.

BECi’s long term solution is to procure power through a regulated power provider (1803), in which BECi is a co-owner, along with four other Louisiana cooperatives.

Investor-owned utilities (IOU) and electric cooperatives are rate regulated by the Public Service Commission. IOU’s are for profit organizations that earn a return on their ratebased investments. The more invested, the more earned. Built into those rates is a return to investors. The more invested, the more earned. These earnings are distributed as earnings per share. Cooperatives are not for profit organizations that are owned by members. They earn margins, necessary for the cooperative to maintain and grow its systems and pay back members in the form of capital credits in future years.