O'ahu residents will pay less for electricity in March, though people living on other islands will have higher electricity rates this month.

Hawaiian Electric Co. said the typical 600 kilowatt-hour residential bill will decline to $118.71 from $123.58 in February. The effective rate for electricity in Honolulu is dropping to 18.3 cents from the 19.2 cents per kilowatt-hour rate that it charged in February.

Elsewhere in the state the story is different.

—Maui island customers will see their rates rise to 23.2 cents from 22.5 cents in February.

—Hawai'i county residential rates are rising to 30.8 cents from 30.1 cents.

—Kaua'i Island Utility Cooperative is raising rates for the first time since August, when it charged 49.2 cents per kilowatt-hour. In March its residential customers will pay 23.1cents, up from 22.9 cents in February.

Electricity rates spike in Hawai'i last year because most of it is produced using petroleum products such as fuel oil or diesel oil. On O'ahu rates peaked in September when residential customers paid $202.13 for their monthly bill.