Business Blog

By political columnist Bill Minor You’d hardly expect to hear a diehard Reagan-era Mississippi Republican sharply criticizing a big utility company for building a costly, unneeded — and experimental — generating plant with endorsement from state GOP leadership. Well, it has happened. Clarke Reed, of Greenville, pioneer of the state’s modern GOP, has spoken out [...]

In 2012, Entergy Mississippi, Inc. took four key steps toward meeting the ever-growing challenge of providing an ample supply of affordable, reliable electricity to our customers today and into the future. These were high value, long term, big ideas that will provide big savings in the not-too-distant future and help keep our rates low for [...]

MBJ writer Clay Chandler just submitted a story, saying the Mississippi Supreme Court will hear oral argument Jan. 28 related to the Sierra Club’s ongoing legal opposition to Mississippi Power Co.’s Kemper County coal plant. >> Read story …  

Central District Public Service Commissioner Lynn Posey has announced continued rate decreases for ratepayers of Entergy Mississippi. From an issued press release. Entergy Mississippi customers with a typical 1,000 kWh use should see a decrease of about $3.37 a month for the remainder of 2012. “Rate decreases and cost savings from Entergy Mississippi could not [...]

>> SEE UPDATE AS OF THURSDAY MORNING …. JACKSON — State utility regulators have asked Mississippi Power Co. and the Sierra Club to submit proposals on how to proceed with the Kemper County coal-fired power plant. The Mississippi Supreme Court ruled on March 15 that the Public Service Commission failed to lay out its reasoning [...]

Presley, Adams debate details of coal project consumer impact Of the three incumbents RUNNING for re-election to the Mississippi Public Service Commission — which regulates public electric, gas, telecommunications, water and sewer utilities — only one faces a serious challenger. Northern District Commissioner and Democrat Brandon Presley is opposed by Republican Boyce Adams. Both have [...]

Every year, hunters flock to the Delta to take advantage of some of the best public hunting land in the state offered by the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries & Parks’ wildlife management areas (WMAs) and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service’s Theodore Roosevelt National Wildlife Refuge Complex. This year, however, hunters are wondering if [...]

By Amy McCullough Today the Mississippi Public Service Commission ruled from the bench that utilities cannot use their customers’ money to donate to charities. “They can however, allow customers to donate money on a voluntary basis through a check box on their bills. No longer will they be able to raise power or gas bills [...]

By Amy McCullough GULFPORT – While lawyers prepared for the hearing upstairs, more than 20 Gulf Coast residents rallied in the lobby of the Harrison County Chancery Court on Feb. 14, as Mississippi Sierra Club director Louie Miller explained a lawsuit with a pair of flip flops. Miller held up a pair of the popular [...]

By Amy McCullough Here we go again. The Kemper County clean coal plant got approved this summer, but Mississippi Power Company (MPC) and the state Public Service Commission are still continuing the coal vs. natural gas debate that we first began writing about in December 2009. This time the subject is MPC’s coal-fired Plant Daniel [...]