Experts who spoke to The Lens said that the practice effectively insulates shareholders from risk, shifting it to ‘captive customers.’ But Entergy insists that the payments encourage investment, lowering borrowing costs and ultimately benefiting its customers.
The company’s report indicates that after a few years of improvements, the city’s electric reliability may be slipping once again.
Entergy planned to sell its transmission assets a decade ago, a commitment that helped put a federal antitrust investigation to rest. It never happened.
Among the measures was one calling for a study of Entergy New Orleans ownership and control. All items will have to go before the full council.
A lack of investment in hardening the grid and the unfulfilled promises of a new gas plant leave regulators asking whether the utility should have done more.
A coalition of environmental and consumer advocates also filed a motion with the council this week calling for new accountability measures, some of which overlap with Moreno’s proposals.
New Orleans customers still lacking power may have electric damage to their properties they need to fix themselves, Entergy executives said.
Due to cost and timing, the company is rebuilding the grid the way it was before, with overhead wires rather than underground wires, which are more resilient to hurricane damage.
