New Maine electricity rates go into effect

By Ethan Andrews, Bangor Daily News Staff

New rates for Central Maine Power and Versant Power customers went into effect July 1.

Under the new rates for CMP, approved by state regulators last month, a typical residential customer using 550 kilowatt-hours of electricity per month should expect an increase of $4.91 per month, according to the Maine Public Utilities Commission.

A typical Versant residential customer using 500 kWh in Versant’s Bangor Hydro District can expect to pay roughly 31 cents more per month. A customer using the same amount of electricity in the Maine Public District will see an increase of roughly $2.80 per month, according to the commission.

CMP’s increase was driven primarily by storm recovery costs, though associated with storms with damage exceeding $15 million were spread over a two-year period, according to the PUC.

Other contributors to the increase at both utilities include renewable energy contracts; net energy billing; adjustments to the Efficiency Maine Trust assessment rates; and changes to transmission service rates, which are set by the regional transmission operator and reviewed by federal regulators, according to the PUC.

Versant’s rate hike also factors in a $3 million penalty imposed on the utility for failing to meet the PUC’s benchmarks for reliability and performance.

From 2014 to 2024, Maine’s electricity rates increased at the third fastest rate in the country, from 12.65 cents per kWh to 19.62 cents over that decade, peaking at more than 20 cents in 2023.