Utility Customers Assistance Fund Boosted, Businesses To Testify

HARTFORD (AP) — Northeast Utilities says $10 million for a fund to help residential customers affected by an extended outage is insufficient and has promised to triple the amount.

It says customers without power for at least seven days due to the storm are eligible for a credit of between $100 and $200.

Charles Shivery, chairman, president and chief executive of Northeast Utilities, said Tuesday the new $30 million offer follows comments from customers and Governor Dannel P. Malloy. He said the utility wants to keep faith with the 1.2 million customers of subsidiary Connecticut Light & Power.

The initial offer was made November 9.

In related news, business owners and trade representatives are scheduled to provide details to a Connecticut panel about how two recent major storms and power outages affected their livelihoods.

Gov Malloy’s so-called “Two-Storm Panel” was scheduled to meet November 30, and speakers on the agenda included leaders of groups representing manufacturers, retail merchants and other organizations.

Hundreds of thousands of Connecticut residents lost power for days after the remnants of Hurricane Irene hit earlier this fall, and again after the rare October snowstorm that toppled trees and power lines. That October snowstorm brought down trees, limbs and power lines, leaving more than 800,000 customers of the state’s two utilities in the dark at the peak of the outage.

Many companies also lost several days’ worth of business and income.

The storm review panel is expected to release its findings on Connecticut’s preparation and response to the storms in December. It was scheduled to meet again Friday, December 2.