PUC questions Electricity Maine ads
The state's Public Utilities Commission is requesting information from Auburn-based wholesale power provider Electricity Maine, seeking clarification of concerns about company advertisements the commission says are potentially misleading.
The Portland Press Herald reported the PUC action is not a formal investigation but the Auburn company is preparing a response to the inquiry, in part, about advertisements that aired earlier this year, promising electricity rates lower than the standard offer, which is set by the PUC in March.
Beating the standard offer price drove the company's growth to over 150,000 customers last year, but CEO Kevin Dean told the paper that's no longer the company's strategy.
The company's lowest rate is now on par with the standard offer and its other products are at higher rates but can be locked in for a duration of up to 18 months, the paper reported.
The PUC is also seeking to know why the company automatically renews a customer's contract for another year, even if the rate for the next year is higher. Dean told the paper that the company does, however, inform customers of the new rate. Derek Davidson, director of the PUC's consumer assistance division, told the paper that the PUC requires companies to give a 30- to 60-day notice before a contract expires but doesn't require that the supplier must disclose the new rate.
Clarification: A previous version of this story did not clearly indicate that Electricity Maine notifies customers of rate adjustments when renewing their contract for another year.
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