Illinois utility watchdog: Bad deals peddled by alternative electricity suppliers

(The Center Square) – A utility watchdog group is warning Illinoisans to be wary of alternative electricity suppliers.

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."