The St. Petersburg City Council voted to move forward with a study to analyze the practicalities of leaving Duke Energy for citywide electricity services.
The down-to-the-wire vote after hours of resident comments marked the city’s most significant step yet toward potentially dropping the monopoly utility company and forming a city-run electric utility.
Dozens of residents — professors, plumbers, a high school student and even one man who said he was a former Duke employee — asked the council to approve the study, saying they’re struggling to pay their electric bills. They also cited Duke Energy’s guaranteed rate of shareholder profit, a range with a midpoint of 10.3%.
Many of those who spoke in opposition to the study were Duke Energy employees, who touted the company’s charitable donations in the community. They also said Duke’s large staff possessed state-of-the-art grid expertise the city wouldn’t be able to replicate.
But ultimately, the majority of the voting council members said they wanted as much information as possible about their options.
“You want relief and you can’t get it anywhere else so you’re coming to us asking us to be the best stewards we can possibly be,” said Council Member Brandi Gabbard, addressing the packed audience at City Hall. “It takes the political will to say, ‘We are at least willing to explore.’”
Thursday’s vote authorized spending up to $590,000 for the study, which will be conducted by a consulting company called NewGen Strategies and Solutions. One of the study’s primary focuses will be whether residents could pay lower electricity bills under a municipal grid.
The vote in favor was 4-3, with council members Gina Driscoll, Copley Gerdes and Mike Harting voting against. Corey Givens Jr. was not present for the vote. A tie would have meant the vote failed.
The city of Clearwater, which is also considering leaving Duke, commissioned a similar study from the same consulting company. It estimated that residents would save millions.
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