BOSTON – NSTAR (NYSE: NST) has proposed cuts in electrical rates that would pare costs for residential customers and small business customers by 8 percent, the company announced yesterday.
If approved by the Mass. Department of Public Utilities, the new rates will take effect July 1. “Just when our customers start using more electricity with air conditioners and dehumidifiers, we’re pleased to provide a significant savings,” said Thomas J. May, the utility company’s chairman, president and CEO.
The proposed changes are in the company’s “Basic Service” fixed rates, representing the cost of the electricity NSTAR buys from wholesalers. NSTAR Electric makes no money on this fee, which changes twice per year. Total charges per kilowatt-hour, which also include delivery charges, vary slightly by region.
For residential customers, the 8-percent decline would pare the Basic Service rate to 10.84 cents per kilowatt-hour, NSTAR said, saving the average 500-killowatt-hour customer about $5 per month. Small businesses would see a similar change.
In the Dartmouth-New Bedford region, and other arreas formerly served by Commonwealth Electric, the rate for small businesses would fall to 11.1 cents per kilowatt-hour from the current 11.8 cents, NSTAR spokesman Michael Durand told the Providence Business News today. “That’s roughly a 6 percent decrease,” he noted.
NSTAR (NYSE: NST), based in Boston, is a natural gas and electric utility serving 1.4 million customers in New Bedford, Dartmouth, Fairhaven and other portions of eastern and central Massachusetts. Additional information is available at www.nstar.com.
