Maine opened its electric industry to competition March 1, 2000. Under Maine's plan, consumers are guaranteed power at competitive prices through a standard offer. A standard offer refers to a fixed electricity price which is established through competitive bids submitted by potential electricity suppliers. Each existing utility service territory has three (small, medium, and large) standard offer generation prices that electricity customers in the service territory can select.

• Maine's nominal electricity prices—prices unadjusted for the effects of inflation—have increased steadily over the 1990s, reaching a high of 9.77 cents per kilowatthour (kWh) in 1999. The retail price in 1999 was 30 percent higher than the price in 1990 (see graph).
  
  
• Because of the precipitous increase in nominal prices from 1990 through 1992, real prices—prices from which the effects of inflation are eliminated—also increased. Since 1992, real prices have remained relatively level, indicating some improvement in controlling prices in the State (see graph).
  
  
• In 1999, residential customers in Maine paid an average of 13.07 cents per kWh, which was substantially above the national average of 8.16 cents per kWh for all residential customers. Industrial customers paid an average of 6.42 cents per kWh, which was also higher than the national average of 4.43 cents per kWh for industrial customers.
  

Related Websites

• Energy Information Administration, Monthly Energy Review (Table 7.5):
  http://www.eia.doe.gov/mer/elect.html
• Average Retail Prices of Electricity, 1960 - 2003 (Table 8.10)
• Energy Information Administration, State Electricity Profiles: http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/st_profiles/maine.pdf
• Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly (Tables 44-55): http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/epm/epm_sum.html
• Energy Information Administration, U.S. Average Monthly Bills by Sector, Census Division, and State (Table 1): http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/esr/esr_tabs.html
• Energy Information Administration, Electricity Revenue, Sales and Price for Power Marketers (Tables C1-C4): http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/esr/esr_tabs.html
• Energy Information Administration, Electricity Revenue, Sales, and Price by State and Utility: http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/esr/esr_tabs.html