CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WCHS) — West Virginia House Speaker Roger Hanshaw (R-Clay) has called on the Public Service Commission (PSC) to deny a requested rate increase by Black Diamond Power Company and to require the utility to be sold.
Hanshaw criticized the company, which serves roughly 5,000 customers in Clay, Raleigh, and Wyoming counties, for failing to provide reliable service at reasonable rates.
“The company has failed to maintain its infrastructure and refused to make needed investments and repairs in a timely manner,” Hanshaw wrote. “Residents and businesses frequently experience service interruption following routine weather events. Health care facilities have been forced to rely on backup power alternatives when transformers experienced damage and were not timely replaced.”
The PSC is investigating Black Diamond Power after receiving dozens of complaints, including 48 regarding irregular billing, two related to service, and 10 citing safety, reliability, and quality issues. The company also requested a rate increase that would raise average bills by more than $10 per month.
Hanshaw noted that service issues have contributed to some businesses leaving Clay County.
“This case has nothing to do with population density or customer volume. It is entirely about Black Diamond Power Company’s failure to deliver adequate service in a protected territory over which it has been granted a monopoly. That failure is unacceptable. The citizens and businesses in Clay County deserve better,” he wrote.
The House Speaker urged the PSC to order the sale of Black Diamond Power to a reputable, capable entity.
Legal staff have been directed to investigate the utility and provide a report to the PSC by April 15.
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