Electric choice is working in Connecticut as competitive electricity prices continue to fall for United Illuminating power customers . It is hard to argue against 15% savings, which is what current (Summer 2011) low electric rates in the United Illuminating (UI) territory are yielding for customers who have switched off of default rates and moved towards competitive electricity prices.

UI customers are still relatively new to the idea of receiving multiple electric rate offers. Though Connecticut electricity has been deregulated for some years now, competitive electricity offers were not offered to residential customers until just a few years ago. Savings were small at first, but with the UI Generation Service Charge (GSV) rates recently increasing and wholesale rates remaining low, competitive electric companies have been able to offer attractive electricity prices.

UI electricity customers can be reassured that selecting a low electric rate from a alternative supplier will not upset UI or end the business relationship. The United Illuminating Company is in the business of delivering power, and they continue to charge regulated rates to all of their customers for this service. They also continue to send their customers the monthly electric bill. The generation default rate that customers pay with UI is passed through to competitive electricity companies who have won auctions for the right to service default paying customers. Believe it or not, even if you haven’t selected a competitive supplier in Connecticut, you are already paying a competitive supplier through default service.

Electricity competition is working in the United Illuminating Company service area because customers can choose from a variety of electric suppliers at electricity prices that are lower than default rates.

Current Low Electric Rate for United Illuminating Customers:

Residential electricity customers of ComEd are seeing rate savings by competitive electricity companies for the first time since the Electric Choice Laws in Illinois were established in 2007. With ComEd price to compare rates having been established through May 2012, customers can look at competitive electric rates and see clear savings that will show up on their monthly electric bill.

People can find lower ComEd rates by shopping for competitive electric rates at online energy comparison sites. Current savings are well above 10%. The ComEd price to compare includes electricity generation and transmission charges. The distribution rates found on the ComEd electric bill continue to be regulated by the Illinois Utility Commission and charged by ComEd. Choosing a competitive electricity company for electricity supply is simply about finding and paying a lower electric rate. When a switch is made there are no service interruptions and you continue to receive your monthly electric bill from ComEd.

The misconception about electric choice in Illinois is that by selecting an alternative electric company you are leaving ComEd. The reality is that you remain a ComEd customer no matter who you choose for electricity generation. Furthermore, ComEd does not profit off of the default price to compare generation rate, they simply pass on the revenues from customers to electricity companies. ComEd does not care if their customers shop for competitive rates, their profits are earned from the regulate distribution charges.

Electric suppliers have started to enter the ComEd market and offer products to residential customer, and more are expected over the next year as ComEd becomes an active residential electric choice market.

The term “Baltimore Gas and Electric Prices” has taken on a new meaning with Maryland electricity choice. In the past, when someone asked what the current Baltimore Gas and Electric prices were, the answer could be found at the BGE website, and customers were forced to pay those rates charged by the regulated monopoly. Today, it takes on a whole new meaning as BG&E customers are free to shop for competitive electric rates and find the best offers.

Maryland electricity deregulation has taken BG&E away from the retail aspect of the electricity business. The electric choice laws deregulated the electricity generation, however the delivery of the power (distribution) remains the regulated responsibility of the incumbent utilities, such as Baltimore Gas and Electric. As a regulated utility, BG&E charges a default generation rates, known as standard offer service (SOS), to all of their customers who do not shop for the best electric rates. The profit for these rates are passed through BG&E to electric suppliers who have bid for the right to serve SOS customers. BG&E does not profit from the SOS default rates and want their customers to shop for lower electric generation rates. BG&E profits are confined to the regulated delivery charges found on the electric bill.

If you can find an electric rate offered by a competitive electricity supplier that is lower than the BG&E default rate, you will save money on your montly Baltimore Gas & Electric bill. Baltimore Gas and Electric continues to send you a monthly electric bill even after you choose a new energy supplier. In most cases, the competitive supplier’s charges are also included on the BG&E bill in place of the default service rates. If this is not the case, then you will receive two bills, one from BG&E for electricity delivery service and one from the competitive supplier for generation service. However, in most cases you will only receive one electric bill.

Here are some current electricity price offers for BG&E customers:

PSEG electricity customers can save as much as 17% on their electric supply bills by selecting an alternative electric supplier. Electricity shopping has been picking up steam in recent months as more competitive electricity companies have filed and received electricity supplier licenses from the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities. However, many consumers are still uninformed that New Jersey in now an electric choice market, and even more are uninformed about just how much they can save.

In the past, surveys done in New Jersey regarding market awareness on electric choice has shown that many people just don’t want to go through the “hassle” of shopping for electricity because the end result is only a few dollars a month in savings. However, as competition has heated up and pushed competitive pricing down, the savings are now becoming quite more significant, especially for medium and large houses.  In the past, electricity savings in New Jersey had been  reserved for the largest commercial and industrial customers in the state.  Things have certainly changed as more and more alternative suppliers compete for the 3.3 million New Jersey residential electricity consumers.

PSEG customers using 1,000 KWh would save $20 a month ($240 per year) by choosing the lowest rate available compared to the PSEG default rate.  Homes using 2,000 KWh would save more than twice that ($46.60 a month and $559.20 a year) because PSEG default rates get higher the more power you consume.  A good rule of thumb for figuring out your average monthly KWh is to figure you will use 1 KWh for every square foot of home (1,500 square foot home would use 1,500 KWh average per month).

 
Current Rate Offers From Competitive Suppliers (Updated Daily):

Electricity customers being serviced by United Illuminating (UI), a utility company servicing southern Connecticut, are shopping for lower electric rates as prices in the competitive market have become much lower than UI default rates.

United Illuminating power company offers a default rate of 10.62 cents per KWh for their customers who have not done power shopping. Customers who compare electric rates will find savings of 10% or more. The high UI default rates has made the United Illuminating territory attractive for competitive electricity companies to enter the market, causing prices to go down further.

MX Energy is the leading competitive supplier in the area with more than 19,000 UI customers. When UI customers choose an alternative supplier for their electric generation supply, UI continues to deliver the power and send the monthly electric bill to the customer. Electricity shopping is purely about finding savings and getting a lower rate on the monthly electric bill. Nothing else changes when a switch is made; there is no interruption of service and no one has to come to your home to adjust any lines and wires.

Here are some current competitive electricity rates for United Illuminating Customers:

The vast majority of Philadelphia electricity customers are serviced by the utility PECO Energy.  At the beginning of 2011 PECO customers had their electric rates, which had been capped since 1997, lifted.  This launched the beginning of true electric choice in the area.

PECO energy customers have the ability to shop and compare electric rates, which  have been resulting in electric bill savings for thousands of Philadelphia residences and businesses.  Customers can compare competitive electricity rates in Philadelphia against the PECO price to compare.  PECO default rates increased in July, making competitive electric rates even more attractive.

Competitive Philadelphia electricity rates are providing as much as 18% savings versus PECO default rates for residential customers, and between 10-20% savings for business electricity customers.

Below are current PECO Residential Electric Rates

Below are current PECO Business Electric Rates