BANGOR, Maine — The standard power price for homes and businesses served by Central Maine Power Co. will drop starting in January after bidding to supply those customers concluded Tuesday.
The Maine Public Utilities Commission announced it accepted bids that will drop residential prices 3.7 percent, to about 6.5 cents per kilowatt-hour. Medium business customer prices will drop by about 11 percent for the year, on average, with prices that will change on a monthly basis.
The standard offer prices for medium-sized customers, such as small businesses and schools, will range from a high of 9.6 cents per kilowatt-hour in February to a low of 5.5 cents per kilowatt-hour in May.
Customers pay the standard offer price if they have not elected to get their power through a third-party competitive electricity provider.
The offer reflects the second bidding process that’s led to a decline in standard offer power prices. The PUC in its last procurement, however, changed its auction schedule, shifting its annual bidding and purchase closer to the regional system’s wintertime peak.
“We are pleased that prices remain stable or slightly decreasing, allowing retail customers and businesses to benefit from recent downward trends in energy markets that have been reflected in New England wholesale prices,” said Mark Vanno, chairman of the commission, in a news release.
He said it’s difficult to say whether the trend will continue, given constraints on natural gas capacity and the regional system’s reliance on natural gas for power generation.
The bid announced Tuesday was the first completed on the new bidding schedule, buying power for the full calendar year. The final price reflects an average of three years of procurements, which dampens year-to-year changes in standard offer power prices.
The PUC said it will release the names of the winning power suppliers in two weeks, after the contracts for power supply are completed.
Standard offer prices for Emera’s Bangor Hydro and Maine Public Service districts will be determined during a hearing Wednesday.