NEW ORLEANS - Entergy New Orleans is looking to break away from its parent company, the Entergy Corporation.

Currently, Entergy New Orleans relies on the corporation for the funding required for infrastructure along with the gas and fuel needed to run their plants.

The move, which came in the form of a filing with the City Council, would seek to break away because the parent company has to provide similar funding to their non-regulated businesses.

Gary Huntley, Entergy New Orleans’ vice president of regulatory and governmental affairs explained this includes nuclear projects and unforeseen financial issues or losses that the corporation may suffer. ENO would be forced to pass this cost along to customers in the form of higher energy bills. Huntley says ENO now wants to follow a Texas law that would allow it to control its own funding. Huntley told WWL-TV in New Orleans that it’s really about local control of rates.

"We know what the rates are," Huntley said. "The rates are approved by the city council. We have an estate of what the average weather patterns are so we have some prediction of what the revenue should be. We have an idea of how much fuel we burn to produce that energy, so we have an idea of what our costs are going to be.”

ENO’s proposal would provide $5 million worth of credits which could go to its customers, but the City Council would have the final say on how that money is actually spent. Should the federal energy commission also approve, the company would give an additional $5 million a year for a total of five years.

"It could be spread out evenly over 12 months,” Huntley said. “It could be over a period of time where customers typically have higher bills. It could be for a specific project that the council wants to undertake without having to charge customers additional money for. It could be for an existing energy smart program.”