Study: Ratepayers Pay More Due To Lack Of Natural Resources

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A new report commissioned by Massachusetts finds that it – and other New England states – has historically paid more for electricity due to its lack of indigenous energy sources.

The report, ‘Recent Electricity Market Reforms in Massachusetts: A Report of Benefits and Costs,’ looks at a range of administrative, legislative and regulatory changes put in place over the past four years to reverse that trend and examines the costs and benefits of the impact on the state's economy as a whole.Â

According to Massachusetts, once fully implemented in 2015, the initiatives are expected to yield total benefits to electric customers of $2.5 billion – nearly two and a half times as great as the $1.1 billion invested to implement them.Â


Relying on cost-benefit methodology that has been adjudicated in numerous Department of Public Utilities cases over the years, the report found that, when compared to the estimated $8.4 billion spent on electricity in Massachusetts in 2009, the resources committed to implement new energy market policy initiatives are modest and promise direct benefits to Massachusetts ratepayers.Â

The state says these policies spur economic development and job creation. For example, Massachusetts says clean energy employment has doubled in the past four years, with more than 11,000 people currently employed in the sector.

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