SPRINGFIELD - Only months after waging a massive political battle over high power bills, Ameren's Illinois utilities Friday asked to raise delivery charges for electricity and natural gas.

The utilities filed papers asking state regulators for delivery rate increases that would average 8.5 percent for power and 11.6 percent for natural gas on the bills of AmerenIP residential customers.

Homes served by AmerenCIPS would see smaller increases, amounting to an average of 4.4 percent annually for power and 7.1 percent for gas. For AmerenCILCO, the figures are 2.8 percent for power, while gas bills should actually decline slightly - 1.8 percent - due to some accounting changes.

Breaking down a typical AmerenIP bill for a customer who has natural gas heat, the increases work out like this: annual electric bills now that cost $1,161 would rise to $1,254 - up $93 - although that increase will be more than offset by an annual bill credit worth $102. The credits were part of the rate relief program agreed by lawmakers and power companies earlier this year, but those credits are due to be steadily reduced each year.

For the typical AmerenIP gas customer, a current annual gas bill of about $895 would rise to $999, a jump of $104.

The utilities say delivery charges, the portion of power and gas bills they make a profit on, make up only one-third of the overall bill. The raw costs of electricity and gas are passed on without profit.

The utilities requests' come on the heels of a compromise that saw several energy companies, including Ameren, agree to pay $1 billion in rebates and bill credits over the next several years. At the time, company officials warned they'd have to ask for an increase of less than 10 percent.

The increases aren't imminent or guaranteed because the Illinois Commerce Commission must approve Ameren's request. That process could take close to a year, and last time, the utilities only got about half of what they wanted.

"Every case is going to be weighed on its own merits," said commission spokeswoman Beth Bosch.

But Scott Cisel, president and chief executive officer of the Ameren Illinois utilities, said the new money was important and not getting it in full could crimp plans to improve reliability and customer service.

He said AmerenIP, for example, planned capital improvements - replacing poles, gas pipes and stringing new wires - worth $4 million for the Decatur area alone in 2008. All three utilities are due to spend $900 million during the next three years to boost reliability and serve new customers.

In an interview with the Herald & Review, Cisel said AmerenIP, AmerenCIPS and AmerenCILCO were being hammered by rising costs for doing crucial work like this that wasn't being recouped by stagnant customer fees.

"We install typically 5,000 poles per year, we string over 600 miles of conductor on an annual basis and we install over 200 miles a year of underground plastic pipe for gas service," he added. He said costs have jumped by margins of 40 percent to even 75 percent over the last three years.

"All that puts additional pressures on the financial performance of the utilities," he added. Cisel said the three Illinois utilities were "providing the least amount of positive contribution to the bottom line" of corporate parent Ameren Corp. He said investors were unhappy and the utilities' credit ratings hovered near "junk bond status," with other measures of credit worthiness also tanking.

He said the net effect was staggeringly higher borrowing costs, the full extent of which will be revealed when the utilities announce third quarter financial results Nov. 9.

"You will see that our interest expense is tens of millions of dollars higher this year to date than last year," Cisel said.

"One other thing you are going to find out is that our net income for the three Ameren Illinois utilities is significantly lower this year to date than what it was last year. All of these factors keep the investment community very concerned about the financial performance of the Ameren Illinois utilities."

Despite that reasoning, some lawmakers still expressed frustration with Ameren's request. But because of the multiyear deal they approved, lawmakers don't have much leverage to act. Instead, they'll have to sit back and watch how the commerce commission acts.

"This is exactly why this deal should have never taken place," said state Rep. Chapin Rose, R-Mahomet, who voted against the $1 billion deal.

State Rep. Dan Brady, R-Bloomington, who also voted "no," agreed that lawmakers shouldn't have given power away.

"Once again, the consumer takes it on the chin," he said.

One thing some financial analysts already have questioned is the utilities' sense of timing. Filing new rate increases now comes in the same year as consumer outrage over deregulated power market bills that jumped by 45 percent to even 80 percent in some cases in January.

Those increases eventually were offset by a $1 billion rate relief package that the legislature passed. Rebate checks were distributed, and it locked in a series of consumer bill credits that diminish through 2009.

Cisel said the utilities had consistently warned legislators they would have to come back for more money.

"There is probably never a good time to file a rate increase," he said.

Tony Reid can be reached at treid@herald-review.com or 421-7977. Springfield Bureau writer Mike Riopell contributed to this report.