Vermont energy profile

Manufacturing energy costs in Vermont

Vermont plants pay 12.59 cents per kWh for industrial power as of May 2026, which puts the state 44.5% over the national average and 41 of 51 in the country, counting from the cheapest.

Current prices in Vermont

  • Industrial electricity: 12.59 cents per kWh (May 2026, EIA).
  • Commercial electricity, the rate a warehouse or distribution center in Vermont typically pays: 21.47 cents per kWh.
  • Industrial natural gas: 4.43 per Mcf (May 2026), 3.7% above the national average.
  • Just below Vermont on the price ladder: Virginia at 10.53, Delaware at 10.69, Maryland at 11.22 cents. Just above: Maine at 14.48, New Jersey at 14.57, District of Columbia at 14.6 cents.

What the rate does to operating cost

  • A 10 kW machine running a 4,000 hour year costs about 5,036 in electricity at Vermont rates versus 3,484 at the national average; at 50 kW the gap is 25,180 versus 17,420, and at 200 kW it is 100,720 versus 69,680.
  • At this rate, efficiency projects clear their hurdle faster in Vermont than almost anywhere: every avoided kWh is worth more, so compressed air leak repairs, VFD retrofits, and scheduling around demand charges deserve a fresh look.

What factory labor pays in Vermont

  • Industrial production managers: $54.88/hr median in Vermont versus $60.61 nationally (OEWS 2025).
  • Industrial engineers: $49.52/hr median in Vermont versus $49.25 nationally (OEWS 2025).
  • Production supervisors: $36.32/hr median in Vermont versus $35.79 nationally (OEWS 2025).
  • Tool and die makers: $33.32/hr median in Vermont versus $30.79 nationally (OEWS 2025).
  • Industrial machinery mechanics: $30.37/hr median in Vermont versus $31.02 nationally (OEWS 2025).
  • Machinists: $30.14/hr median in Vermont versus $28.24 nationally (OEWS 2025).
  • Vermont employs about 28,000 manufacturing workers as of Jun 2026 (BLS).

Manufacturing base in Vermont

  • Vermont has 1,005 manufacturing establishments employing about 29,246 workers (Census County Business Patterns, 2023).
  • Largest sectors by establishment count: food manufacturing (209), fabricated metal products (98), wood product manufacturing (91), furniture and related products (57), machinery manufacturing (54).

Sources and update cadence

  • Prices come from the U.S. Energy Information Administration and refresh automatically when the agency publishes; this page also archives each month's Vermont observation so the local price history deepens over time.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.