If you are moving into an existing home, you can request a new account online, in person at one of our Community Offices, or by calling 901-820-7878. If requesting online, please give us at least 48 hours to process.

You can request disconnection of service online, in person at one of our Community Offices, or by calling 901-820-7878. If requesting online, please give us at least 48 hours to process.

If you move from one location to another, you can request to transfer your existing account to your new home. Transfer requests can be made online, in person at one of our Community Offices, or by calling 901-820-7878. If requesting online, please give us at least 48 hours to process.

The quickest way to report a power outage is to call MLGW’s automated outage reporting hotline, 901-544-6500, and enter either your home phone number or account number. The automated reporting hotline is available 24/7.

You can report a Street Light outage in two ways: online or by calling 901-320-1498.

You can request maintenance for your MLGW Leased Outdoor Light in two ways: online or by calling 901-320-1498.

Memphis Light, Gas and Water - Accounts Payable P.O. Box 388 Memphis, TN 38101

MLGW operates five Community Offices where you can pay your bill in person. In addition, you can make utility payments at one of our many Paying Agents located throughout the community.

MLGW accepts a variety of payment methods, including online.

Call MLGW’s Information Center at 901-544-6549, between 7:00am and 7:30pm, Monday through Friday. In addition, you can review the information on the Billing section of our website.

Households are billed for electricity based on the total amount of electric power that passed through the meter during the billing period. Units of electricity use, called kilowatt hours (kWh), are noted on your bill each month in the usage column. One kWh equals 1,000 watts of electricity used for one hour. An example: a 100-watt light bulb, burning for 10 hours, would use one kWh.

Keep in mind that your home continues to use electricity even when you think you’ve turned off everything. For example, the refrigerator operates 24 hours a day, as does any free-standing freezer and your water heater. These are some of the larger constant energy users in your home. Small appliances—such as clocks, cordless telephones and answering machines—also consume small amounts of power every minute of every day. Appliances and electronics that have remote controls—such as televisions and stereos—continue to draw a small amount of power, even when there is no picture or sound being played. You can discover how much it costs to operate individual appliances by using Appliance Calc, one of our new online energy calculators.

When there is a power outage affecting your entire home, no electricity is passing through your electric meter and ALL equipment and appliance operation stops.

Natural gas charges are based on consumption and a purchased gas adjustment (PGA). Consumption, measured in hundred cubic feet (Ccf), reflects the amount of natural gas that flowed through your meter during the billing period. Remember, natural gas passes through the meter only when appliances—such as a furnace or water heater—are operating.

The PGA is a fee that fluctuates monthly, based on the price MLGW paid to purchase natural gas from its suppliers. The PGA is a per-unit cost and can be an increase or a decrease. As a result of gas industry deregulation, MLGW buys natural gas under several different scenarios, including long-term contracts and spot market purchases, to ensure low costs to our customers. MLGW’s gas rates, however, are based on an historic wholesale market cost of $2.10 MMBtu. To adjust for seasonal market fluctuations from this baseline cost, MLGW gas rates are subject to the Purchased Gas Adjustment Rider, which was adopted in 1993 for all customer classes.

Market gas prices fluctuate widely with demand. During winter months when demand for gas is high, costs increase. During summer months when gas use is lower, gas typically is less expensive. From 1993 through 2000, MLGW was able to buy gas at or below the base price of $2.10 MMBtu, resulting in negative or insignificant PGA fees in summer and winter months. Since 2000, the gas industry has been adjusting to unprecedented demand for summer gas usage, caused by an increase in construction of electric generation facilities using gas turbine technology and decreased gas drilling. Like MLGW, many utilities have adopted similar pricing policies to reflect fluctuating natural gas costs.

MLGW bills its water customers based on the amount of water that was used during the billing period, although there is a minimum bill. The amount is measured in hundred cubic feet (Ccf) increments. One Ccf equals 748 gallons.

Some surrounding municipalities have their own water systems serving residents and generate their own water bills.

MLGW serves as the billing agent for many public services provided by the city, county and other municipalities. This arrangement reduces paper and mailing expenses for the agencies and you, our customers.

The agencies provide MLGW with the billing information, which is printed on your MLGW bill. We then collect your payment and forward it to the appropriate agencies. If you have questions about these services, you should contact the specific organization—rather than MLGW—for information.

There are hundreds of ways to cut your energy expenses, although each home and family offers different opportunities for savings. In general, you can cut your utility bill by reducing energy use. There are many ways to do this—from turning off appliances and equipment when they are not needed, to repairing air leaks in your home, to replacing old appliances with energy-efficient models that use less energy to operate. Keep in mind that energy improvements do not always cost money—sometimes a simple change in your habits, like raising the thermostat to 78 degrees in the summer and lowering it to 68 degrees in the winter, can have a big impact on your utility bill.

For specific tips on how to reduce utility costs in your home, check out our online energy tools: Home e-Valuation and Energy Calculators.

MLGW offers numerous online resources to assist you with exploration of new technology, equipment and systems. You can access our Energy Library for information on heating, cooling, lighting, home weatherization, laundry, food preparation and storage, and more.

Energy University offers educational information you and your family can use for school and home.

You can also access our Energy Calculators to determine how much money and energy you could save by adjusting your thermostat settings, replacing old appliances with new energy-efficient models, replacing standard incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs and making other changes in your home.

Electricity and natural gas are two forms of energy that make our lives easier. In addition to the benefits both fuels offer, there are potential dangers if used unsafely. Visit our safety section for information on downed power lines, gas leaks, carbon monoxide and other safety issues.

MLGW does not generate electricity, instead buying 100% of its supply from the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), a federal power generator. MLGW owns and operates its transmission and distribution system, which serves more than 400,000 homes and businesses in Shelby County.

"Green power" is a term used to describe electricity that is generated from renewable sources, such as the sun, wind, or biomass. Green power is considered environmentally friendly since it does not deplete natural resources or emit pollutants during the generation process.

MLGW is currently evaluating participation in the Tennessee Valley Authority's green power program, Green Power Switch. Participation would enable MLGW customers to voluntarily pay a premium for one or more blocks of green power, which would be generated by TVA and mixed into the region's power supply. Check back for details in fourth quarter 2004.

No, at least not yet. Current U.S. legislation allows individual states to determine whether to deregulate their electric market. Thus far, California, Montana, Oklahoma, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire and Maine have deregulated while other states are in the review and legislation process. Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina and several mid-western states remain among the areas with minimal activity. In general, states with higher electric rates seem to be advancing faster than states with lower electric rates.

Deregulation focuses on the generation side of the electric industry, not the transmission and distribution side. This puts Tennessee in a unique position since all electricity distributed in the state-including that delivered by MLGW-is generated by the Tennessee Valley Authority. Current legislation does not require TVA, as a federal utility, to open access to its market. Until legislation changes, or TVA voluntarily deregulates its market, no other company can sell electricity to end-use customers in the region.

Despite this, MLGW has been preparing for electric industry deregulation for several years with the belief that Tennessee will see electric choice early in the 21st century. By improving operations, monitoring electricity purchase options and implementing competitive strategies, MLGW has taken steps to position itself for success in a deregulated market.