FORM 8-K



                  SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

                        Washington, D.C.  20549



                            CURRENT REPORT



                Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the
                    Securities Exchange Act of 1934

                    Date of Report:  July, 1998


                      MAINE PUBLIC SERVICE COMPANY            
        (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)



            Maine                   1-3429          01-0113635      
(State, or other jurisdiction    (Commission       (IRS Employer
      of incorporation)          File Number)    Identification No.)


209 State Street, Presque Isle, Maine                 04769  
(Address of principal executive offices)            (Zip Code)


Registrant's Telephone Number, Including Area Code   207-768-5811









Current Report, Form 8-K for                            Date of Report
Maine Public Service Company                            July, 1998

Item 5(a) Other Material Events - Agreement on Sale of Generating
          Assets.

          Reference is made to the Company's Form 10-K for December 31,
          1997 and Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 1998, where
          the Company's efforts to divest of its generating assets in
          accordance with Maine's restructuring legislation are
          discussed.

          On July 7, 1998, the Company announced that it has agreed to
          sell its electric generating assets to WPS Power Development,
          Inc. (WPS-PDI) located in Green Bay, Wisconsin, a wholly-owned
          subsidiary of WPS Resources Corporation.  Both parties signed
          a purchase and sale agreement providing a sales price of $37.4
          million for the Company's 91.8 megawatts of generating
          capacity, which is 3.2 times higher than the net book value of
          the assets.  If the Maine Public Utilities Commission (MPUC)
          approves the sale by the first quarter of 1999, the Company
          would agree not to increase customer rates by 3.1% on February
          1, 1999 now scheduled under its Rate Stability Plan (see the
          Company's Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 1998).  In
          addition, the net sale proceeds will reduce stranded
          investment by approximately $21.3 million, which will decrease
          future customer rates.  In addition to the MPUC's approval,
          approval must also be obtained from the New Brunswick Lt.
          Governor in Council before the sale can be consummated.  

          The proposed sale is the result of a law passed last year by
          the Maine Legislature that was designed to create competition
          in the electric industry beginning March 1, 2000.  This law
          requires all Maine utilities to sell their U.S. generating
          plants and the output from foreign plants.  Bangor Hydro-
          Electric Company, Maine's second largest electric utility, has
          solicited invitations for bids on their generating assets. 
          Central Maine Power, the State's largest electric utility,
          announced in January, 1998, that it has agreed to sell their
          generating assets to the Florida-based FPL Group.

          In the MPUC Order approving the Company's divestiture plan,
          the Commission noted a number of concerns that it would
          address when the final sale is brought for approval.  These
          concerns include whether the sale of the assets of the
          Canadian subsidiary should be delayed pending the development
          of a retail market for electricity in Canada or until the MPUC
          completes its final study on the efficiency of competitive
          markets in Northern Maine and whether any sale would create,
          or exacerbate, a concentration of generation market power to
          the detriment of the Company's customers.  The Company
          believes that an adequate market exists both in the local

                                   -2-

Current Report, Form 8-K for                            Date of Report
Maine Public Service Company                            July, 1998

Item 5(a) Other Material Events - Agreement on Sale of Generating
          Assets - Continued

          service area and the much larger Maritime and Quebec region
          and intends to present to the MPUC its arguments supporting
          this belief.

          In August, 1997, the Company solicited bids for its non-
          nuclear generation assets and power entitlements, including
          its Canadian subsidiary.  Several bids were reviewed from both
          Canada and the United States buyers before selecting the
          successful bidder.  The Company has been negotiating with WPS-
          PDI since March to work out the details of the proposed asset
          sale agreement.

          Facilities being sold total 91.8 megawatts of generating
          capacity and include:  34.5 MW of hydroelectric and diesel
          generating units at the Canadian subsidiary, Maine & New
          Brunswick Electrical Power Co., Ltd., (Tinker Plant), as well
          as its transmission system and interconnection with NB Power;
          31 MW of hydroelectric, oil-fired steam, and diesel generating
          facilities at the Caribou Generating Station; 1.4 MW at Squa
          Pan Hydroelectric generating station and storage dam; 4.2 MW
          at Flo's Inn diesel generating station; a dismantled diesel
          unit at Houlton; the Millinocket Lake Storage Dam; and the
          Company's joint ownership share equivalent to 20.7 MW of Wyman
          Unit No. 4, an oil-fired plant in Yarmouth, Maine.

          The Company's 5% ownership share in Maine Yankee was not part
          of the sale because the plant was permanently shut down last
          August and is now undergoing decommissioning.  The rights to
          the 18.1 MW output being purchased under a power purchase
          agreement with Wheelabrator-Sherman were offered in the
          initial request for proposal, but were not included in the
          final sale.  When retail access begins, the Company will
          auction the Wheelabrator-Sherman entitlement to a third party
          until 2006, when the agreement with W-S expires.  The Company
          has agreed to buy back electricity from WPS-PDI at a set price
          to cover the period between the closing date and February 29,
          2000, when retail access begins.

          Nineteen employees who operate and maintain the plants located
          in Maine and in New Brunswick will be affected by the sale. 
          It is expected that some employees will be hired by WPS-PDI,
          while other positions will be eliminated.  Those individuals
          not offered employment by the buyer will be eligible for an
          enhanced severance and extended benefits transition package
          consistent with Maine's restructuring statute.


                                   -3-

Current Report, Form 8-K for                            Date of Report
Maine Public Service Company                            July, 1998

Item 5(a) Other Material Events - Agreement on Sale of Generating
          Assets - Continued

          The Company cannot predict whether the sale will be approved
          by the MPUC, after considering the concerns expressed by the
          MPUC or, if approved, under what terms.

                                   MAINE PUBLIC SERVICE COMPANY
                                             Registrant



Dated:  July 7, 1998               /s/  Kurt A. Tornquist              
                                   Kurt A. Tornquist, Controller -
                                   Asst. Secretary-Treasurer



































                                   -4-
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FORM 8-K

                  SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

                        Washington, D.C.  20549

                            CURRENT REPORT

                Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the
                    Securities Exchange Act of 1934

                    Date of Report:  July, 1998

                      MAINE PUBLIC SERVICE COMPANY            
        (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

            Maine                   1-3429          01-0113635      
(State, or other jurisdiction    (Commission       (IRS Employer
      of incorporation)          File Number)    Identification No.)

209 State Street, Presque Isle, Maine                 04769  
(Address of principal executive offices)            (Zip Code)

Registrant's Telephone Number, Including Area Code   207-768-5811

Current Report, Form 8-K for                            Date of Report
Maine Public Service Company                            July, 1998

Item 5(a) Other Material Events - Agreement on Sale of Generating
          Assets.

          Reference is made to the Company's Form 10-K for December 31,
          1997 and Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 1998, where
          the Company's efforts to divest of its generating assets in
          accordance with Maine's restructuring legislation are
          discussed.

          On July 7, 1998, the Company announced that it has agreed to
          sell its electric generating assets to WPS Power Development,
          Inc. (WPS-PDI) located in Green Bay, Wisconsin, a wholly-owned
          subsidiary of WPS Resources Corporation.  Both parties signed
          a purchase and sale agreement providing a sales price of $37.4
          million for the Company's 91.8 megawatts of generating
          capacity, which is 3.2 times higher than the net book value of
          the assets.  If the Maine Public Utilities Commission (MPUC)
          approves the sale by the first quarter of 1999, the Company
          would agree not to increase customer rates by 3.1% on February
          1, 1999 now scheduled under its Rate Stability Plan (see the
          Company's Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 1998).  In
          addition, the net sale proceeds will reduce stranded
          investment by approximately $21.3 million, which will decrease
          future customer rates.  In addition to the MPUC's approval,
          approval must also be obtained from the New Brunswick Lt.
          Governor in Council before the sale can be consummated.  

          The proposed sale is the result of a law passed last year by
          the Maine Legislature that was designed to create competition
          in the electric industry beginning March 1, 2000.  This law
          requires all Maine utilities to sell their U.S. generating
          plants and the output from foreign plants.  Bangor Hydro-
          Electric Company, Maine's second largest electric utility, has
          solicited invitations for bids on their generating assets. 
          Central Maine Power, the State's largest electric utility,
          announced in January, 1998, that it has agreed to sell their
          generating assets to the Florida-based FPL Group.

          In the MPUC Order approving the Company's divestiture plan,
          the Commission noted a number of concerns that it would
          address when the final sale is brought for approval.  These
          concerns include whether the sale of the assets of the
          Canadian subsidiary should be delayed pending the development
          of a retail market for electricity in Canada or until the MPUC
          completes its final study on the efficiency of competitive
          markets in Northern Maine and whether any sale would create,
          or exacerbate, a concentration of generation market power to
          the detriment of the Company's customers.  The Company
          believes that an adequate market exists both in the local

                                   -2-

Current Report, Form 8-K for                            Date of Report
Maine Public Service Company                            July, 1998

Item 5(a) Other Material Events - Agreement on Sale of Generating
          Assets - Continued

          service area and the much larger Maritime and Quebec region
          and intends to present to the MPUC its arguments supporting
          this belief.

          In August, 1997, the Company solicited bids for its non-
          nuclear generation assets and power entitlements, including
          its Canadian subsidiary.  Several bids were reviewed from both
          Canada and the United States buyers before selecting the
          successful bidder.  The Company has been negotiating with WPS-
          PDI since March to work out the details of the proposed asset
          sale agreement.

          Facilities being sold total 91.8 megawatts of generating
          capacity and include:  34.5 MW of hydroelectric and diesel
          generating units at the Canadian subsidiary, Maine & New
          Brunswick Electrical Power Co., Ltd., (Tinker Plant), as well
          as its transmission system and interconnection with NB Power;
          31 MW of hydroelectric, oil-fired steam, and diesel generating
          facilities at the Caribou Generating Station; 1.4 MW at Squa
          Pan Hydroelectric generating station and storage dam; 4.2 MW
          at Flo's Inn diesel generating station; a dismantled diesel
          unit at Houlton; the Millinocket Lake Storage Dam; and the
          Company's joint ownership share equivalent to 20.7 MW of Wyman
          Unit No. 4, an oil-fired plant in Yarmouth, Maine.

          The Company's 5% ownership share in Maine Yankee was not part
          of the sale because the plant was permanently shut down last
          August and is now undergoing decommissioning.  The rights to
          the 18.1 MW output being purchased under a power purchase
          agreement with Wheelabrator-Sherman were offered in the
          initial request for proposal, but were not included in the
          final sale.  When retail access begins, the Company will
          auction the Wheelabrator-Sherman entitlement to a third party
          until 2006, when the agreement with W-S expires.  The Company
          has agreed to buy back electricity from WPS-PDI at a set price
          to cover the period between the closing date and February 29,
          2000, when retail access begins.

          Nineteen employees who operate and maintain the plants located
          in Maine and in New Brunswick will be affected by the sale. 
          It is expected that some employees will be hired by WPS-PDI,
          while other positions will be eliminated.  Those individuals
          not offered employment by the buyer will be eligible for an
          enhanced severance and extended benefits transition package
          consistent with Maine's restructuring statute.

                                   -3-

Current Report, Form 8-K for                            Date of Report
Maine Public Service Company                            July, 1998

Item 5(a) Other Material Events - Agreement on Sale of Generating
          Assets - Continued

          The Company cannot predict whether the sale will be approved
          by the MPUC, after considering the concerns expressed by the
          MPUC or, if approved, under what terms.

                                   MAINE PUBLIC SERVICE COMPANY
                                             Registrant

Dated:  July 7, 1998               /s/  Kurt A. Tornquist              
                                   Kurt A. Tornquist, Controller -
                                   Asst. Secretary-Treasurer

                                   -4-