May 5, 2006—The national average price of electricity in the United States rose by a stunning 10.9 percent during the period of April 2005 to April 2006.
The annual survey conducted by an independent consulting company, NUS Consulting Group of Park Ridge, N.J., found that the average price of electricity in the United States was 8.82 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) as of April 1, 2006, compared with 7.95 cents per kWh in April 2005.
The survey sampled 24 of the largest investor-owned electric companies in the country using an industrial model of monthly usage totaling 450,000 kWh with a monthly demand of 1,000 kW. The survey model also assumed an operating power factor of 85 percent and customer-owned transformation equipment.
As with past surveys from NUS Consulting, the study found customers in New York, New Jersey and California still pay some of the highest electricity prices in the country. However, in 2006, customers in Texas also joined this group as electricity prices in their state rose by more than 40 percent in just one year.
As demonstrated in previous surveys, the highest power prices can be found in those States that have deregulated their retail electricity markets. Considered in the past by many as a means of lowering electricity prices, the central promise of deregulation has yet to be fulfilled for many consumers.
The survey was undertaken by the world’s leading utility cost management consultants, NUS Consulting Group. For more information, visit the Web site.
