The City of Marlborough today announced the selection of ConEdison Solutions as its competitive power supplier for the residential and business electricity customers. The selection -- made on a competitive basis – is part of the City’s new “Community Choice Power Supply” initiative, a program for electric power supply that will help stabilize electricity costs for Marlborough consumers.
Marlborough now becomes only the second locale in Massachusetts to enact a community opt-out aggregation for residential and small business customers.
“For the first time, electric customers in the City of Marlborough will be able to protect their interests as consumers through purchase options,” said Marlborough Mayor Nancy Stevens. “With the authorization of the City Council, the Community Choice Power Supply initiative allows the City to provide local energy services in a way that stabilizes costs, promotes competition and ensures local control over energy supplies. This pilot program begins at a time with the summer cooling months and associated increases in electrical consumption fast approaching and, therefore, may prove advantageous in assisting the City’s consumers in realizing savings on their electric bills. We will monitor rates closely over the course of the summer and beginning of fall when new basic service rates will be set.”
The Community Choice Power Supply initiative provides city residents and small businesses with energy price stability, and also offers opportunities for potential cost savings. The program creates competition among energy suppliers to help ensure competitive rates and to endow the City with local control over energy supplies. Acting on behalf of the City’s 18,000 electricity ratepayers, the City of Marlborough selected ConEdison Solutions on a competitive basis because of the provider’s ability to stabilize rates, its capacity to maximize savings opportunities, and its strong record of performance as an energy supplier in the Northeast.
The program begins on the June meter reading for residential and small commercial ratepayers, and on the July meter reading for medium and large commercial and industrial users.
"We are proud to have been chosen to leverage the power of the marketplace on behalf of Marlborough residents,” said Jorge J. Lopez, President and CEO of ConEdison Solutions. “Our company brings many assets to the Community Choice Power Supply program, including a record of performance and service, significant experience in providing electricity throughout the Northeast, and the capacity to maximize value through our understanding of the energy marketplace."
In 1997, the Massachusetts legislature approved structural changes that promoted energy supply competition and provided local municipalities with the option of introducing supply-related competition and customer choice within their jurisdictions. Marlborough’s Community Choice Power Supply program was approved by the City Council in June 2006.
Under the State program, services provided to local ratepayers by National Grid are now divided into two parts. The first part, which remains regulated by the state, involves the physical delivery of power supplies over the wires to consumers. National Grid, which directly charges ratepayers for this service, will continue to maintain these wires and will continue to read meters. National Grid will remain responsible for maintaining the day-to-day reliability and quality of delivery provided to ratepayers.
The second part of electric service involves supplying the actual power running through these wires. This component is now a competitive service. Under the Community Choice Power Supply program, these supplies now come from ConEdison Solutions, which is categorized as a “competitive power supplier.” Charges for the supply component of electric service will be incorporated into normal bills that consumers receive from National Grid, which will indicate supply-related charges and other standard billing information.
All eligible consumers of National Grid “basic service” are automatically enrolled in the Community Choice Power Supply program. Ratepayers may “opt out” of the program by choosing another competitive power supplier or by choosing to default back to “basic service” supplies provided by National Grid. Those choosing to “opt out” must do so within 30 days from the date that ConEdison Solutions mails an “opt out” postcard and a Consumer Notification Form to ratepayers.
Consumers may also return to National Grid’s “basic service” alternative after the initial “opt out” notice period by contacting either ConEdison Solutions or National Grid and asking to cancel their accounts, with no penalty charge. If, however, a consumer participates in the program, chooses to opt out, and then wishes to return to the Community Choice program the ratepayer can do so only upon acceptance by the supplier.
"National Grid is very pleased that the City of Marlborough is taking this exciting step to bring the benefits of electricity supplier choice to its homes and businesses. We have worked closely with the City throughout this process and fully support municipal aggregation programs," said Robert H. McLaren, regional president for National Grid's electricity distribution company in Massachusetts.
Colonial Power Group, Inc., a Massachusetts energy consulting company, was chosen in a competitive process to design, implement, and administer the Community Choice Power Supply program on behalf of the City. “This program provides price stability, local control, and competition without adding a single dollar to the tax burden of Marlborough’s residents and business community,” said Brian Murphy of Colonial Power Group, Inc. “We commend the City’s leaders for their innovative approach to creating a new paradigm in energy purchasing.”
Marlborough is only the second location in Massachusetts to enact a community ‘opt-out” aggregation based on the legislature’s initiative. The state’s first municipal opt-out aggregation was the Cape Light Compact, a consortium of 21 municipalities serving Cape Cod and Martha’s Vineyard. The Cape Light Compact, which also uses ConEdison Solutions as its energy supplier, selected the firm on a competitive basis in 2004.
About ConEdison Solutions
ConEdison Solutions is a leading energy services company that provides cost-effective energy solutions for commercial, industrial, residential and government customers. Based in White Plains, New York, with offices in Burlington, Massachusetts; Cherry Hill, New Jersey; Arlington, Virginia and Houston, Texas, the company's dedicated team of energy professionals delivers a broad range of commodity, consulting, demand-side management, and performance contracting services. ConEdison Solutions creates customized programs and services tailored to help customers achieve their individual energy objectives and is accredited as an Energy Service Provider (ESP) by the National Association of Energy Service Companies (NAESCO).
ConEdison Solutions is a subsidiary and registered trademark of Consolidated Edison, Inc. (NYSE:ED), one of the nation's largest investor-owned energy holding companies. ConEdison Solutions presently serves electric commodity customers in Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Delaware, Maryland, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Texas and Washington, D.C. More information is available at the ConEdison Solutions web site at www.conedsolutions.com. Visit the Consolidated Edison web site at www.conedison.com for information on all Consolidated Edison companies.
