Utah's residential electricity prices rank among the 10 lowest in the nation, according to a new report by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

In 2006, the average retail price of electricity in Utah was 7.61 cents per kilowatt-hour, up from 7.52 cents per kwh in 2005. Just seven other states in 2006 had average residential electricity prices lower than Utah's, according to the report.

The U.S. average in 2006 was 10.4 cents per kwh, up from 9.45 cents in 2005. Hawaii had the most expensive electricity in 2006 at 23.36 cents per kwh. West Virginia had the cheapest at 6.32 cents per kwh.

Dave Eskelsen, a spokesman for Rocky Mountain Power, which serves about 75 percent of Utah's residents, said most people forget that between 1990 and 1997 electricity rates in Utah for Rocky Mountain Power customers declined roughly 30 percent.

"You see relatively low rates in the Intermountain West because of low-cost coal," Eskelsen said. "The bottom line on why rates are low is that the company over the last two decades has worked diligently to retain its position as a low-cost energy provider. This is a substantial accomplishment given the nature of growth and our service area."

Eskelsen said residential customers of Rocky Mountain Power pay 7.54 cents per kwh, slightly lower than the EIA average for the state.

Laura Nelson, Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.'s energy adviser, said Rocky Mountain's parent company, PacifiCorp, also incorporates a significant amount of hydro power on its system, lowering costs.

In Washington, where PacifiCorp also serves customers, the cost of electricity averaged 6.81 cents per kwh, the second lowest in the nation.

"It has actively pursued long-term cost planning," said Nelson, who added that the addition of new natural gas plants in Utah in recent years could push prices higher.

"Certainly it is in our interest to look for a diversity of options because there can be an impact on prices if we rely more heavily on natural gas," Nelson said.

The EIA report noted that 2006 was the warmest year on record for the 48 contiguous states.

"El Nino is cited as contributing to milder winter temperatures and helping to make December 2006 the fourth warmest December since recordkeeping began in 1895," the report said. "As a consequence of the warmer weather, total December 2006 net generation was 3.6 percent lower than it was in December 2005."

In 2006, 49 percent of the nation's electric power was generated at coal-fired plants, the report said. Nuclear plants contributed 19.4 percent, 19.9 percent was from natural gas-fired plants and 1.6 percent was generated at petroleum-fired plants. Conventional hydroelectric power provided 7.1 percent of the total, while other renewables, like biomass, geothermal, solar and wind, generated 2.9 percent.

About 94 percent of Utah's electric power generation comes from coal.

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E-mail: danderton@desnews.com