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Energy

Electrifying news: Utilities offer home rebates, discounts for moving from gas to electricity

By: Kate Shonk CUB Sustainable Communities Liason At almost every outreach event, CUB staff fields questions on electrification. Now more than ever, it’s clear consumers are curious about alternatives to gas, and now more than ever there are financial incentives to help them make that switch.  Because electric supply can…...

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CUB Q&A: Winter storm exposes the myth of fossil fuel reliability

By Sarah Moskowitz, CUB Deputy Director This past Christmas Eve, as many of us were busy with last-minute holiday preparations, CUB rushed out an email to people in northern Illinois with this ominous subject line: ALERT: Power grid operator calls for energy conservation over the next 24 hours. We were…...

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$10.3B renewable energy transmission project long-term response to capacity shortage

The power grid operator for Central and Southern Illinois has approved a $10.3 billion transmission line project that in the long term will bring more clean energy to the region and help prevent problems that have slammed electric customers with skyrocketing power bills this summer. The project, approved by the…...

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Ameren offers $500,000 in assistance, and special payment plans have July 31 deadline

In a summer of skyrocketing power prices, Ameren Illinois announced it is using $500,000 in shareholder funds to give relief to electric customers–and until July 31 it is offering certain customers friendlier plans to pay off debt.   The Residential Assistance Credit is in response to the highest electricity prices CUB…...

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CUB explainer: What are Capacity Markets?

As we hold community events across the state of Illinois, people are often surprised to hear that our electric bills cover not only the power we use but the power we could use. That’s capacity.  And the cost of capacity–for most customers it’s hidden in the supply charge we pay–has…...

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Q&A: Hourly Pricing and price spikes

What is ComEd’s Hourly Pricing program? Under traditional rates, people pay a flat amount for electricity supply that changes only a few times a year.  Hourly Pricing is an alternative pricing plan in which participants pay a supply rate that is subject to more immediate market conditions and can change…...

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Tell CUB: How do you fight climate change? (You could win a prize!)

Recent United Nations (UN) reports on climate change have painted a grim picture of the current climate crisis. The good news is that the UN is optimistic that the consequences of climate change–extreme weather, rising water levels, droughts and more–can be avoided or lessened if we take action now. In…...

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Greenflation: Myth vs Fact

Amid headlines about record inflation, critics of clean energy policy have tried to blame it for the higher heating bills and the general surge in prices–they even use the term “greenflation.” But climate-friendly policy is not the cause of the high prices.  The world was already grappling with pandemic-related supply…...

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First person: Home energy assessment simple, easy, helpful for CUB lawyer

By Eric DeBellis CUB Regulatory Counsel As a lawyer at CUB and a new homeowner, I figured I ought to practice what I preach, so I signed up for a home energy audit through my utility this winter. My experience was simple, easy, and helpful. An energy efficiency technician from…...

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Using a space heater this winter? Consider this.

Gas prices are skyrocketing right now, and it looks like these high prices will continue through the winter. CUB’s Consumer Advocacy Department has already received some calls: Consumers want to know if it’s better to turn down their thermostat and turn on a space heater. The short answer: If you…...

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