PSEG Default Rates Going Up in Summer 2014
PSEG recently announced the prices they will charge for summer of 2014 for generation and transmission service to customers who have not chosen a competitive supplier and are on the basic generation service (BGS) rate structure. The BGS prices will increase by 11% for residential customers on the the first of June, 2014 when the summer rates for all New Jersey electricity users on default service go into effect. Consumers who have taken advantage of New Jersey electricity choice will not have to worry about the increase in the BGS rates, which are default electric rates for people who have not taken the time to shop the competitive energy rate market.
Basic generation service rates charged by PSEG are determined through an auction process where competitive electricity suppliers bid for the ability to charge a portion of the BGS customer pool. Customers receive on rate structure for the summer month period which begins on June first every year and goes through the end of September, and then a second non-summer period that starts on October first and goes through the end of May of the following year. Since October 1, 2013 residential PSEG electricity customers on BGS rate class have been paying $0.114457 per KWh. On June 1, 2014 a customer will pay $0.1270 per KWh for all consumption above 600 KWh which represents an 11% increase.
In an effort to avoid the price increase, PSEG residential electricity customers who are currently on the default rate are looking to the competitive market to find a lower electricity price. Consumers should be weary of variable rate offers as companies often market a low introductory rate that goes up after the first month to prices that are even higher than the default BGS rates. In contrast, low fixed rates can offer respectable savings for PSEG customers this summer while offering protection against potential future increases by the utility.
Below are competitive PSEG rates being offered by electricity suppliers who are licensed by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities. All rate plans are updated everyday.
