Versant Power customers See Rateโ Changes Starting October 1st
Versant โคPowerโ customers โare experiencing new electricity rates effective October 1st,โ stemming โfrom adjustments to stranded costs and the public policy โcharge. These changes are a direct result โฃof two recently enacted Maine stateโค laws: โคLD 1792, focused onโ the fair โrecovery of post-restructuring strandedโ costs, and LDโค 1777, aimed โat reducing costs and enhancing customer protections within โคthe state’s net โenergy billing programs.
The impact of these changesโฃ varies depending on โฃthe customer’s district and energy โขusage. Customers in the Bangor Hydroโข District who typically use 500 kilowatt-hours per month andโฃ currently pay $154.27 for delivery and standard offer supply โcan anticipate a 12-cent increase to their bill. Those using 1,000 kilowatt-hours monthly will see anโข increase โฃof 99 โคcents.
Conversely, customers in the Maine Public District using 500 kilowatt-hours per month and paying $148.17 for delivery and standard offer โsupply will experience a $2.77โฃ decrease. โA customer in that district using โ1,000 kilowatt-hours per month will see a $3.79 reduction.
Versant Power explainsโ that stranded โcosts represent a volumetric charge covering remaining expenses from the 2000 electric industry restructuring, includingโ power purchase agreements and the โcosts associated withโข the retired Maine Yankee power plant. The public policy charge is a fixed fee used to fund state-mandated โprograms โฃlike net energy billingโฃ and low-income assistance.
These adjustments follow a previous โฃrate increase in April, linked to changes โin Versant’s distributionโ rate,โฃ whichโ resulted in approximately an 8% increaseโ to the averageโข residential customer’s bill for 500 kilowatt-hour usage.