Eversource Anticipates Rate Increase in July

MANCHESTER, NH - The state’s largest electric utility has filed a rate increase request with state regulators slated to be issued in July, according to a press statement.

Eversource filed a Energy Service Charge increase – from 9.9 cents per kilowatt hour to 10.94 cents, effective on July 1, 2016.

“The Eversource Energy Service Charge rate is calculated annually and adjusted every six months, based on the company's actual cost of producing or purchasing the energy it needs to serve its customers,” according to a statement Martin Murray, the manager of New Hampshire Media Relations for the company.

The increase was “a price forecast,” meaning that while the company was not requesting a rate change in May, it is “anticipating” higher costs in the future. The rate forecast will by updated in a filing expected in June with the New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission, Murray stated.

The company, the statement added, offered energy efficiency programs that could help customers reduce their electricity usage and save money. An online catalog of efficient appliances, lighting products, weatherization programs, and other cost-saving opportunities are on the company’s website, Eversource.com.

Customers in New Hampshire, Murray noted, can also choose to purchase energy from an independent supplier instead of their regulated utility. Eversource provides energy “to those customers who have not chosen a supplier or who have been denied service by a supplier,” he said.

A list of registered energy suppliers is available and the NHPUC website.