Maine CMP Customers to See Jump in Bills Beginning in July

It's no secret that our Maine utility bills often have more twists and turns than Chubby Checker in a blender. And if you have trouble understanding your utility bills each month, you're not alone.

From the delivery charge to the supply charge, it can be tough to understand exactly what you're looking at. Also, what the heck is a kilowatt hour? Is it a measurement of time? How many kilowatt hours does it take you to properly decipher your monthly charges?

Okay enough quirky humor, let's get down to brass tacks. Why do people say that? Anyways, according to an article in the Kennebec Journal, the Maine Public Utilities Commission has approved an increase in CMP customer's bills to help cover storm damage that happened from late 2022 through 2023.

How much did it cost Central Maine Power to work through all the storms over the year and a half period? About $220,000,000.00. You read that correctly, a whopping two hundred twenty million dollars.

If you're a residential customer, as most of us are, your increase is likely to average about an extra $10.29 per month, the KJ reported.

Maine Public Utilities Commissioner, Patrick Scully, told the Kennebec Journal in part,

“This is really an appropriate time for us to take a very hard look at what we can do to strengthen the resilience of the system and also to find ways to restore service promptly at as reasonable a cost as we can. It’s very challenging to announce publicly significant rate increases. I can only say that with the hard work of our staff these underlying costs have been scrutinized very carefully and it’s unfortunate, but it’s necessary to make these adjustments. Working together with all stakeholders in good faith is the only way to solve the significant challenges climate change has put in front of Maine families.”