US energy companies file for $23.1 billion in rate increases — Fortune
In the United States, energy companies filed applications for rate increases totaling $23.1 billion in the first three quarters of 2026. According to Fortune, at the current pace, the value of such applications could approach the record nearly $31 billion seen in 2025.
Electricity prices
Over the past five years, electricity prices in the United States have risen by about 40% on average. The record value of rate-increase applications in 2025 was nearly twice the previous high.
According to the nonprofit organization PowerLines, investor-owned energy companies increased their planned capital expenditures by more than 27%, to at least $1.4 trillion by 2030. A year earlier, the figure stood at $1.1 trillion. These calculations do not include private companies.
Grids and data centers
Previous rate increases were linked to aging power grids, the need to modernize them, extreme weather events, and fluctuations in fuel costs. Future spending also includes the construction of new generating capacity, including to meet growing demand from data centers for artificial intelligence development.
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Data center developers can build their own generating capacity at their facilities or cover part of the costs to reduce the burden on other consumers. At the same time, approaches vary by state and project: some states have introduced moratoriums on data centers, while others have rejected or reduced requested rate increases.
Political factor
High gasoline and diesel prices have become one of the main issues ahead of the midterm elections in November. PowerLines Executive Director Charles Hua believes that rising electricity and natural gas bills have also become a political issue capable of influencing races for governors, U.S. senators, and members of public utility regulatory commissions.
As of Friday, the average price of a gallon of regular gasoline was $4.33, up 42% from a year earlier. The average price of diesel fuel reached $6.33 per gallon, up 73% year over year. The Consumer Price Index also showed that heating oil rose by 74% in September compared with the previous year.
In the third quarter, energy companies filed applications for rate increases totaling $4.5 billion, with nearly half of that amount accounted for by southern states. The largest quarterly application, for $700 million, was filed by Jersey Central Power & Light.
