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This comes after a Citizens Utility Board review of state
reports shows that ComEd and Ameren Illinois customers with
alternative suppliers have lost a combined total of about $297
million over the last year and $1.8 billion since 2015.
While ComEd and Ameren deliver electricity to their customers
over the power lines they own, under Illinois law, those
customers can choose another company to supply the actual
electricity.
“We have had people tell us that they had no idea they were with
an alternative supplier until their bill went through the roof,
so it’s very important that people read the supply section of
their bill,” said Jim Chilsen, communications director with CUB.
The report found that ComEd customers who were with an
alternative supplier on average paid about 3 cents per
kilowatt-hour more, compared with ComEd’s supply price.
Customers in Ameren territory who were with an alternative
supplier on average paid about 2.4 cents per kWh more, compared
with Ameren’s supply rate.
Chilsen recommends exploring demand-response programs with ComEd
and Ameren that charge a wholesale market price that can change
hourly, compared with the traditional utility supply rate that
only changes about twice a year.
CUB recommends if you’re on a municipal aggregation community
power deal, confirm the price and how long the contract is. Your
community may have negotiated a lower rate than the utility’s
supply price, but don’t assume that. About 43% of ComEd
customers and 53% of Ameren customers with an alternative
supplier were on a community power deal.
"Far too many Illinois consumers have suffered skyrocketing
power bills because of an alternative electricity supplier.
Going with an alternative offer pitched by a sales rep is a
gamble you are likely to lose,” CUB Executive Director Sarah
Moskowitz said. “There are more reliable ways to reduce electric
bills, including energy efficiency."
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