The electricity bill increase that took effect Thursday, October 1, places Puerto Rico among the U.S. jurisdictions with the highest residential electricity prices. Comparing the new local rate of about 33.58 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) with the latest U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) data, which cover July, the island would rank third, behind Hawaii and California.
EIA data put Hawaii far ahead in first place at 48.00 cents per kWh. California registered 33.61 cents; Maine, 32.41; Massachusetts, 30.49; and New York, 29.90. The U.S. average was 18.31 cents.
Puerto Rico stood at 25.19 cents in July, before the increase. The gap between Puerto Rico and California is minimal: about three hundredths of a cent per kWh. Puerto Rico's 33.58 cents is roughly 83% above the U.S. residential average.
The article explains Hawaii's high prices as a useful island comparison. Hawaiian Electric says its prices are generally higher than on the U.S. mainland, partly due to the cost of imported oil used to generate power on several islands. Fuel represents about half of a typical bill, and price swings affect consumers directly.
Geographic isolation also raises costs: unlike mainland grids, Hawaii cannot draw on utilities in neighboring states during generation problems, requiring reserve generating capacity and other backup measures to ensure reliability.