Electricity rates for Maryland residents will soar this summer, according to the Maryland Public Service Commission.
The commission, which oversees state utilities, announced yesterday that customers served by Potomac Electric Power Co. (Pepco), Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. (BGE) and Delmarva Power will see annual rate increases between 35 percent and 72 percent, The Washington Times reported.
A typical electricity bill for Pepco residential customers will jump by 39 percent, or an average of $468 a year, starting June 1 under the newly set prices. For DPL customers, the price will rise by 35 percent, or $464, also on June 1. BGE customers will see an increase of 72 percent, or $743 annually, starting July 1.
The increases are a result of a competitive bidding process among electricity suppliers to provide what is called "standard offer service," which is set at market rates as utilities buy power from wholesalers. The process is monitored by the Public Service Commission as well as the Office of the People's Counsel, a state utilities watchdog group.
Maryland deregulated its electric utilities in 1999, requiring full-service energy providers to separate their supply and distribution businesses. At the time, lawmakers cut residential electricity rates by 6.5 percent below 1993 levels and capped them for six years, according to The Washington Times.
