FILE - In this Tuesday Jan. 20, 2015 file photo, a plume of steam billows from the coal-fired Merrimack Station in Bow, N.H. New Hampshire?s largest utility, Eversource Energy, announced Thursday March 12, 2015 that it has has agreed to sell its power plants. Eversource will sell its nine PSNH hydro facilities and three fossil fuel plants, including the Merrimack Station in Bow, Newington Station and Schiller Station in Portsmouth. (AP Photo/Jim Cole, File)Eversource Energy announced last week that it has has agreed to sell its power plants, including Merrimack Station in Bow. The plant is the town’s largest taxpayer.
FILE - In this Tuesday Jan. 20, 2015 file photo, a plume of steam billows from the coal-fired Merrimack Station in Bow, N.H. Credit: Jim Cole

Eversource customers will see their electric bills rise this summer after the Public Utilities Commission approved a rate increase this week.

The energy charge Friday will jump about roughly 1 cent per kilowatt hour, from 9.99 cents to 10.95 cents. Several other charges will also rise. Average customers will see their monthly bill increase by about 8.5 percent, from $115.79 to $125.55, according to Eversource.

Most utilities decrease their energy charges during the summer months. Eversource’s is rising because the utility didn’t sell as much power over the mild winter as in previous seasons.