Energy consumers in Illinois are quickly learning that they now have the ability to find savings by shopping for competitive electricity and natural gas prices. The Illinois Electric Service Customer Choice and Rate Relief Act of 1997 opened up the energy supply component in the state to choice, allowing alternative suppliers to offer service to customers.

Over the last several years the majority of large businesses serviced by Commonwealth Edison and Ameren shopped for competitive power supply contracts in order to get off high default rates. With falling energy prices, now competitive energy companies are moving in and offering low electricity rates to Illinois residential customers.

Though the supply side of the power business has been deregulated, the utility distribution side is still regulated. This means that no matter which competitive supplier the consumer chooses, the electricity is still delivered by the same regulated utility company that has always serviced them, which in Illinois is either ComEd or Ameren. The Illinois utility companies also continue to manage and maintain the power lines and wires, take the monthly meter read, respond to power failures and other power related emergencies, and send out the monthly electric bill to their customers.

The end result of shopping simply allows for the consumer to find a lower electric rate, or choose to buy a specific generation source for the power they consumer such as wind power. They also have the choice to lock in a fixed rate for a specific term offered by the competitive electric company or choose to ride a monthly variable electric rate. The competition is resulting in abundance of savings for Illinois energy customers.

If you are a ComEd customer, you can find competitive electric rates below (rates updated daily):

Electricity customers being serviced by United Illuminating (UI), a utility company servicing southern Connecticut, are shopping for lower electric rates as prices in the competitive market have become much lower than UI default rates.

United Illuminating power company offers a default rate of 10.62 cents per KWh for their customers who have not done power shopping. Customers who compare electric rates will find savings of 10% or more. The high UI default rates has made the United Illuminating territory attractive for competitive electricity companies to enter the market, causing prices to go down further.

MX Energy is the leading competitive supplier in the area with more than 19,000 UI customers. When UI customers choose an alternative supplier for their electric generation supply, UI continues to deliver the power and send the monthly electric bill to the customer. Electricity shopping is purely about finding savings and getting a lower rate on the monthly electric bill. Nothing else changes when a switch is made; there is no interruption of service and no one has to come to your home to adjust any lines and wires.

Here are some current competitive electricity rates for United Illuminating Customers:

Customers of the Pennsylvania electric utility PECO energy will want to shop and compare electric rates very soon in order to prevent a large energy bill spike this summer.  With gas prices already on the rise and  expected to continue to increase, it is imperative to the personal finance of these energy customers to find lower electricity prices.

For a electricity consumer who uses 1000 KWh a month, the supply portion of the PECO electric bill will increase by more than 10% going from 9.99 cents to over 11 cents starting on July first.  Customers who use more than 1000 KWh will have even higher rates.  PA electric choice is providing savings opportunities for customers, but finding those deals has proved to be difficult for many consumers.

Fortunately, electricity price comparison web sites like www.electricrate.com give PECO energy customers a variety of energy choices with savings and promotions easily identifiable.

Finding a lower electric rate will not take you away from being a PECO energy customer.  PECO energy will continue to serve as your local utility delivering the power to your home or business.  With the Electric Choice Act in effect, PECO no longer is involved in the business of offering competitive generation rates.  They instead only focus on the reliability and maintenance of the power lines and wires.  They are however, mandated by the Public Utility Commission to offer default rates to customers who do not shop for competitive rates.

Electricrate.com provides an easy platform for customers to do energy shopping and compare electric rates being offered to the PECO price to compare default rate.  Current savings of 10-16% are available versus the summer PECO default rates.

Electric bill savings can also be found for Pennsylvania electricity customers who are serviced by the utilities PPL Energy in central Pennsylvania and Duquesne Light in the Pittsburgh area.  As is the case with PECO energy, these energy consumers will remain customers of their respective utility companies no matter which electric supplier they choose.  It is simply about saving money on the electric bill; if you can find a lower rate compared to the default rate then you should switch.

Even after a customer chooses a lower electric rate, they will continue to get their monthly electric bill from their local electricity utility company (PECO, PPL, Duquesne Light).

Electricity rate savings are also available for small businesses throughout the state.  Small business customers of PPL in particular have huge savings potential.  Businesses who have not switched suppliers, and thus are still on the PPL default service, will see their electric bills increase by 15% on June 1 if they do not take action.  If they do shop, they can find savings of about 15% off of current default rates.  If nothing is done the business electric rate will be above 11 cents.  If they shop and compare rates, then they will find competitive electric rates below 8.7 cents.

Electricity customers who are serviced by the utility PSEG are finding savings on their electric bills by shopping for lower electric rates.  Electric shopping in New Jersey is picking up as PSEG and JCPL get ready to set their summer rate increases.

Customers who have not shopped and compared electricity prices are paying high default rates.  The default electricity rates in NJ are set for one year at a time starting on June 1 and ending on May 31.  The summer months (June through September) have a different set of energy rates than the non-summer months (October through May).  While electricity savings are currently available for customers who compare energy prices, the savings are expected to be even greater once the summer default rates take effect on June 1.

In addition to lowering your electric bill, many of the competitive energy suppliers offer promotions such as gift cards and cash back bonuses.  Below are electric rate offers that also have promotional offers.

Electricity choice is certainly becoming a reality in New Jersey.  Customers of PSEG, JCPL, and Atlantic City Electric are seeing more and more electricity options.  One year ago their were less than a handful of options for NJ residential electric customers, now there are about a dozen electricity companies offering electric supply service with more filing the paperwork to enter the market.  True electric competition is taking place in New Jersey.

Compare Competitive PSEG Rates (updated daily):

Though residential electric rates lowered in 2011 for PPL electric customers, the lowest electricity rates in the PPL territory are being offered by competitive electric companies.  The PPL area contains about 1.2 million residential electricity customers in central Pennsylvania.  The majority of these customers are paying the default rate for their electric generation service known as the price to compare.

Customers paying the PPL default rate can find better electricity prices by shopping for competitive rates.  Those consumers who have taken the time to learn about electricity choice have realized that it makes sense as the end result is a lower electric bill.

Despite the price to compare rate coming down from 10.44 in 2010 to 9.27 in 2011, PPL customers can save an additional 9% if they lock in a fixed electricity rate by going here.  Even after choosing another electricity supplier, customers continue to receive their electricity bill from PPL.  PP&L is a local utility company.  Even though Pennsylvania has deregulated the electricity market, PPL continues to serve at the electric delivery company for all of their customers, as well as continues to send the monthly electric bill to all of their customers, even the ones who have switched suppliers.

Current Competitive Residential PPL Rates:

PSE&G electricity customers in New Jersey paying basic generation service rates, the PSE&G default rate, are paying among the highest electric rates in the country.  The basic generation service rates are supply electricity rates that PSE&G charges customers who have not selected and alternative electric generation supplier.  These default rates are based on a series of auctions that PSEG holds for their customers.  Electricity suppliers compete to provide rates for a percentage of the PSEG default customers.

PSE&G passes the supply rates from the electricity companies who win at the auction directly on to customers.  So even when a customer pays the basic generation service default rate, they are still paying money for their supply service to another electric supplier other than PSE&G.

Lower electric rates can be selected by customers who take the time to shop and find their own electricity supplier.  When the auction for default rates takes place electricity suppliers have to take into account that a certain percentage of customers will leave the basic generation service during the year.  For example, if an electric company wins the right to provide default service for 100,000 customers starting in June, they have to put a premium on the price taking into account that there is a probability that 15% of these customers might sign a contract with an alternative electricity supplier who is offering a lower electric rate.

When electricity suppliers market their service and rates to individual customers, they do not have to include a premium since they are pricing for one entity.  This results in lower rates and savings on the PSE&G electric bill.

Here are some current offers and savings for electricity customers in PSE&G:

PECO energy customers might be surprised to learn that even if they choose an alternative electric supplier, they will still be able to pay their PECO bill the same way they have been doing so, including online with e-bill.  This is due to the way electricity choice has been set up in the PECO territory as well as the whole state of Pennsylvania.

Choosing an alternative electricity supplier doesn’t end your tenure as a PECO energy customer.  PECO is a regulated electricity delivery company.  They are in charge of distributing the power in their territory, maintaining the reliability of the lines and wires, and controlling the management of the monthly electric bill.

PECO charges a default rate for electricity generation, also referred to as electricity supply.  When PECO customers use electricity choice to find a lower electric rate, that rate simply takes the place of the PECO default generation rate.  The customer can still pay their electric bill online, as they will still receive their monthly electric bill from PECO energy.

PECO Competitive Rates

Today PSE&G serves as the electricity delivery company for over two million residential and business energy customers living in New Jersey, including major suburbs of New York City and Philadelphia.  PSEG used to be a full functioning regulated electricity company, taking care of all aspects of electricity, generation, transmission, distribution, and customer service.  Now that New Jersey has enacted energy choice, PSE&G is now only in charge of delivering power, transmission and distribution, to their customers.

While New Jersey customers have a choice of who supplies their electricity they do not have a choice of who delivers the power to their homes and businesses.  Many consumers in the PSE&G service territory are reluctant to shop for lower electric rates because they feel loyal to PSE&G.  This is the wrong way to view electricity deregulation.  Even when a customer chooses an alternative electricity company to provide power, that person still remains a customer of PSE&G as PSE&G continues to act as the electric utility company delivery power to the property.

When a PSE&G customer receives their electric bill they will notice that the bill is divided into two sections; delivery and supply.  The delivery charges are those charged by PSEG to deliver power as well as maintain the lines and wires.  The electricity delivery charges are regulated by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities.  The supply section of the electric bill is the part that customers have a choice and can compare electricity rates among other companies.  PSEG customers who do shop pay a default electric rate that PSEG is tasked with charging.  PSE&G does not receive a profit from these default supply charges as stipulated in the New Jersey Electricity Choice and Competition Act.

In addition to PSEG’s service of delivering power and providing default supply rates, they also continue to provide customers with their monthly electric bill.  Even after a PSEG customer chooses an alternative electricity company to provide their electric supply service, the customer will continue to receive one electric bill from PSE&G, in most cases.  It is possible that the alternative electric supplier will want to send their own invoice in which case you will receive two bill, one from PSE&G and one from the chosen supplier.  However, in most cases the competitive electricity companies choose to have their charges billed as a separate line on the PSE&G bill.

The competitive electricity company’s rate takes the place of the PSEG default supply rate, and if the chosen rate is lower than the default rate the customer saves money on their electric bill.  Here are some competitive electric rates that are currently lower than PSE&G default rates.