SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

                             Washington, D.C. 20549


                                    FORM 8-K


                                 CURRENT REPORT


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



       Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): January 14, 1998



                           CENTRAL MAINE POWER COMPANY
             (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)




          Maine                     1-5139                 01-0042740
(State of Incorporation)          (Commission            (IRS Employer
                                  File Number)           Identification Number)




                      83 Edison Drive, Augusta, Maine 04336
                  (Address of principal executive offices)(zip code)



       Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (207) 623-3521







Item 1 through Item 4.  Not applicable.

Item 5.  Other Events.
(a) Storm damage to Company's system. On January 7 through 9, 1998, an ice storm
of unprecedented  breadth and severity struck the Company's  service  territory,
causing  power  outages  for  approximately  280,000  of the  Company's  520,000
customers,  on January 9 immediately after the storm, and substantial widespread
damage to the Company's  transmission  and distribution  system.  To restore its
electrical  system,  the Company has supplemented its own crews with utility and
tree-service  crews  from  throughout  the  northeastern  United  States and the
Canadian  maritime  provinces,  with  assistance  from the Maine national guard.
As of January 20, 1998, service has been restored to approximately 95 percent of
the affected customers.  Although accurate predictions are difficult because of 
the breadth of the damage to its system,  the Company estimates its restoration 
costs,  including capital items, to be  approximately  $55 million,  of which 
the incremental  non-capital costs could reach or exceed $45 million.

On January 15, 1998, the Maine Public  Utilities  Commission  ("MPUC") issued an
Order (the "Order")  allowing the Company to defer on its books the  incremental
non-capital  costs  associated with the Company's  efforts to restore service in
response to the damage resulting from the storm. The Order requires the Company,
as part of its annual filing under its  Alternative  Rate Plan ("ARP"),  to file
information on the amounts  deferred under the Order and to submit a proposal as
to how the costs  associated  with the Order should be recovered  under the ARP.
The MPUC also  specifically  requested  the Company to include in its filing its
views on  whether  it is  reasonable  to allow  recovery  of such  costs  over a
one-year  period  commencing July 1, 1998, or whether a longer or shorter period
would be appropriate.

(b) Extension of Maine Yankee standstill agreements;  preliminary FERC order. As
previously  reported,  Maine Yankee Atomic Power Company  ("Maine  Yankee"),  in
which the Company has a 38-percent  equity interest,  entered into agreements in
August 1997 with the holders of its  outstanding  First  Mortgage  Bonds and its
lender banks (the "Standstill Agreements") under which the bondholders and banks
agreed  that they would not  assert  that the August  1997  voluntary  permanent
shutdown of the nuclear  generating  plant owned by Maine  Yankee (the  "Plant")
constituted a covenant  violation under Maine Yankee's First Mortgage  Indenture
or its two bank credit  agreements.  The parties  also agreed in the  Standstill
Agreements to maintain Maine  Yankee's bank  borrowings at a level below that of
the prior  aggregate  bank  commitments,  which  level  Maine  Yankee  considers
adequate for its foreseeable  needs. The Standstill  Agreements,  as extended in
October 1997,  were to terminate on January 15, 1998, by which date  MaineYankee
was to have reached agreement on restructured  debt arrangements  reflecting its
decommissioning  status. Also as previously reported, on November 6, 1997, Maine
Yankee filed a rate  proceeding  with the Federal Energy  Regulatory  Commission
("FERC")  reflecting  the  Plant's  decommissioning  status  and  requesting  an
effective  date of January 15, 1998,  for the amendments to Maine Yankee's Power
Contracts and Additional Power Contracts,  which revise Maine Yankee's wholesale
rates and  clarify and confirm the  obligations  of Maine  Yankee's  sponsors to
continue to pay their shares of Maine Yankee's costs during the  decommissioning
period.

On January 15, 1998, Maine Yankee,  its bondholders and lender banks revised the
Standstill  Agreements  and extended  their term to April 15,  1998,  subject to
satisfying certain milestone  obligations during the term of the extension.  One
such obligation is that Maine Yankee must accept an  underwritten  commitment to
refinance its bonds and bank debt by February 12, 1998, which commitment must be
subject  only to  closing  conditions  that  are  reasonably  capable  of  being
satisfied by April 15, 1998, and reasonably  satisfactory to the bondholders and
banks.  Maine Yankee has reached  general  agreement on the  structure and basic
terms of an underwritten refinancing arrangement which it believes would satisfy
the  obligation in the extended  Standstill  Agreements  upon receipt of a final
commitment by the prospective underwriter.  The Company cannot predict whether a
satisfactory refinancing arrangement will be consummated by Maine Yankee.

On  January  14,  1998,  the FERC  issued an "Order  Accepting  for  Filing  and
Suspending Power Sales Contract Amendment,  and Establishing Hearing Procedures"
(the "FERC  Order") in which the FERC  accepted for filing the rates  associated
with the amended  Power  Contracts  and made them  effective  January 15,  1998,
subject to refund. The FERC also granted intervention requests,  including among
others those of the MPUC,  Maine  Yankee's  largest  bondholder,  and two of its
lender  banks,  denied the request of an intervenor  group to summarily  dismiss
part of the filing,  and ordered that a public  hearing be held  concerning  the
prudence of Maine  Yankee's  decision to shut down the Plant and on the justness
and  reasonableness  of Maine  Yankee's  proposed rate  amendments.  The Company
expects the  prudence  issue to be pursued  vigorously  by several  intervenors,
including  among others the MPUC,  which  stayed its own prudence  investigation
pending the outcome of the FERC proceeding after a  jurisdictional  challenge by
Maine Yankee and the Company. The Company cannot predict the outcome of the FERC
proceeding.


Item 6 through Item 9.  Not applicable.




                                    SIGNATURE

      Pursuant to the  requirements of the Securities  Exchange Act of 1934, the
Registrant  has duly  caused  this  report  to be  signed  on its  behalf by the
undersigned thereunto duly authorized.




                                 CENTRAL MAINE POWER COMPANY



                                 By ________________________________
                                    D. E. Marsh
                                    Chief Financial Officer

Dated:  January 20, 1998