News in brief AUGUSTA: PUC HEAD OPPOSES FERC PLAN

Kurt Adams, chairman of the Maine Public Utilities Commission, has expressed opposition to a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission plan to impose $13 billion in costs on New England electricity consumers. The plan is designed to ensure that the region has adequate generating capacity to maintain a reliable electric system. “Some estimates indicate that this proposal could increase the average electric bill of the average residential customer in New England by as much a $190 a year over the next five years, producing an effect of $96 a year per customer in the first year to $290 a year in the fifth year,” Adams said. He said the higher rates would likely persist.