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Electric Rates (updated as of January 4, 2024)

New Hampshire has four electric utilities, three of which are profit-seeking investor-owned companies.  Those three are Public Service Company of New Hampshire, which does business as Eversource (the name of its parent company); Granite State Electric Company, which likewise does business under the name of its parent company, Liberty; and Unitil Energy Systems (whose parent company, and brand name, is just Unitil). The state's fourth electric utility, the New Hampshire Electric Cooperative, is owned by its customer-members and is not subject to rate regulation by the Public Utilities Commission. Each of these utilities has a defined service territory, which means you cannot change utilities unless you move.

Note that the rates listed here are those generally available to residential customers; they do not reflect special programs (e.g., time-of-use rates, electric vehicle rates, etc.) or discounts provided for income-eligible customers via the Electric Assistance Program.

Fixed Customer Charge – This is the only charge on an electric bill that does not vary with how much electricity you consume. The fixed charge is intended to cover the costs of providing service that do not vary regardless of usage.

Regulatory Reconciliation Adjustment – Every electric utility subject to regulation by the Public Utilities Commission has persuaded the Commission to allow an additional charge to monthly bills that cover certain charges that vary according to changes outside the control of the utility. On Eversource bills, this charge is called "Regulatory Reconciliation Adjustment." For Liberty, it appears on bills as REP/VMP (Reliability Enhancement Program and Vegetation Management Program) and Storm Recovery Adjustment Factor (combined above on the "Regulatory Reconciliation Adjustment" line for ease of comparison). At Unitil, the name of the charge is "Storm Recovery Adjustment Factor" and covers, obviously, storm recovery costs.  Note that as of 1/1/24, the Regulatory Reconciliation Adjustment" rate for Eversource includes a temporary $0.0027 per kwh charge to recover costs associated with Eversource's acquisition of utility poles from Consolidated Communications, in addition to the ordinary Regulatory Reconciliation Adjustment Charge of $0.00047.

Transmission – This charge covers the costs associated with the bulk power transmission system that moves power around the region, and in some cases into and out of the region, at high voltage. Transmission rates are under federal jurisdiction and are approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). At the state level, the Public Utilities Commission must allow utilities to recover these costs from retail customers.

Stranded Cost Recovery – This charge allows a utility to recover costs it has incurred but cannot otherwise recover because of electric utility restructuring, which required utilities to divest themselves of the generation assets they previously owned. Why are some stranded cost charges now negative? Because most stranded costs are now fully recovered and, as to those that are left, they are reconcidedf periodically – i.e., in light of sales volume, the revenue is adjusted so that the utility only recovers its actual costs.

System Benefits Charge – This charge recovers costs associated with the statewide ratepayer-funded energy efficiency program (NHSaves) and the Electric Assistance Program, which helps people in poverty pay their electric bills.

Delivery Service – This charge covers the cost of delivering electricity to your home via the utility's network of poles, wires, and transformers that move power from substations which acquire power from the bulk power transmission system.

Revenue Decoupling – This is a rate-making technique whereby the connection between a utility's revenue and the utility's sales is severed. This occurs via a periodic rate adjustment; when sales go up, rates adjust downward and, conversely, when sales decrease then rates go up. The purpose of revenue decoupling in New Hampshire is to prevent utilities from losing revenue because of ratepayer-funded energy efficiency.

Default Energy – This is the cost of the actual electricity you use. In legal terms, this is considered "default" service, meaning you are allowed to purchase this electricity from your utility if you do not choose to buy your electricity from a competitive, non-utility supplier. (For information on how to choose a competitive supplier, look here.) Note that the Default Energy rates quoted above are the ones that will be effective from February 1, 2024 through July 31, 2024.  For purposes of comparison, the compararable rate for the New Hampshire Electric Cooperative (which it refers to as "Co-op Power") is $0.1006 (i.e., 10.06 cents per kwh) and the comparable rate for the Community Power Coalition of New Hampshire (CPCNH) is $0.081 (i.e., 8.1 cents per kwh).  Follow this link to determine if the CPCNH is providing service to your community.  

Natural Gas Rates (updated as of January 4, 2024)

New Hampshire has two natural gas utilities, both investor-owned. Energy North Natural Gas does business under the name of its parent company, Liberty. Northern Utilities likewise does business under the name of its parent, Unitil. Each serves a limited geographical territory; many areas of the state do not have a gas utility that serves them. Liberty has two sets of rates: One set applies in Keene (which is served by a freestanding system that has historically been supplied using propane) and the other set applies in the remainder of Liberty's service territory.

Fixed Customer Charge – This is This is the only charge on a natural gas bill that does not vary with how much gas you consume. The fixed charge is intended to cover the costs of providing service that do not vary regardless of usage.

Delivery Charge – This charge is assessed per therm of natural gas usage, and covers the cost of providing the system that delivers natural gas to your home.

Cost of Gas Charge – This charge, assessed per therm of natural gas used, covers the cost to the utility of acquiring the natural gas you use from wholesale suppliers. The charge includes the cost of moving the gas from where it is extracted to the utility's system in New Hampshire.

Local Delivery Adjustment Charge (LDAC) – This charge covers the cost of the statewide energy efficiency programs (NHSaves) and certain environmental remediation charges approved by the Public Utilities Commission. Also included are revenue decoupling adjustments that compensate the utility for fixed-cost revenue lost because of the NHSaves programs.