CUB Alerts Morton Grove Residents Of 2nd ComEd Rate Option

Contact:
Jim Chilsen, [email protected], (312) 513-1784

CHICAGO, September 12, 2016With the end of Morton Grove’s electric aggregation contract, the Citizens Utility Board (CUB) wants to make sure that residents are aware of all their options, including a second ComEd rate option that CUB supports— ComEd’s Hourly Pricing program. The recent deployment of smart electric meters has made Hourly Pricing an even easier choice for residents.

“With the introduction of new smart electric meters, ComEd customers have new and better ways to cut their electricity costs,” CUB Communications Director Jim Chilsen said. “It’s important that ComEd customers know about Hourly Pricing so they can judge if it’s the right choice for their own family.”

While ComEd’s fixed rate might be the right deal for a number of residents, consumers should also consider another option: ComEd’s Hourly Pricing program. Hourly Pricing lets customers take advantage of hourly market-based electricity rates, which tend to be lower during nights and weekends. During these off-peak times, the market price of electricity can be extremely low, dipping to just a penny per kilowatt-hour. However, most Illinois consumers can’t enjoy these lower rates because they are on traditional electricity plans in which the supply rate doesn’t change for months, even years, at a time.

By making simple adjustments to when they use major appliances, like the dishwasher and dryer, Morton Grove residents can join the thousands of Hourly Pricing participants, including many of their neighbors, who have saved an average of 15 percent on the supply portion of their power bills. Programs like Hourly Pricing help reduce electricity demand at “peak times.” Reduced peak demand eases stress on the grid, helping to prevent costly power outages. Lowering peak demand also reduces the need to fire up more expensive “peaker” power plants. The less consumers have to rely on “peaker” plants to meet electricity demand, the lower electricity rates can be for everyone.

“Hourly Pricing is an excellent program that has numerous benefits, beginning with a lower power bill,” Chilsen said. “Now more than ever we need programs that save customers money and make the power grid stronger.”

Residents interested in determining if Hourly Pricing is right for them should call 1-888-202-7787, or visit ComEd.com/HourlyPricing.

CUB is Illinois’ leading nonprofit utility watchdog organization. Created by the Illinois Legislature, CUB opened its doors in 1984 to represent the interests of residential and small-business utility customers. Since then, CUB has saved consumers more than $20 billion by helping to block rate hikes and secure consumer refunds. For more information, call CUB’s Consumer Hotline, at 1-800-669-5556, or visit CUB’s award-winning website, www.CitizensUtilityBoard.org.

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