EDWARDSVILLE — Mayor Hal Patton Thursday announced that the City of Edwardsville recently selected Homefield Energy to serve as its electricity aggregation supplier.
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After a recent competitive bid with three of the country’s leading alternative retail electric suppliers, Homefield Energy was the low bidder for the local electricity aggregation program. The current electricity aggregation agreement expires in December 2020.
The new contract with Homefield Energy secures a rate of $0.0439 per kilowatt-hour and becomes effective in December 2020. This rate is lower than the current default Ameren residential and small business supply rate of $0.04542 per kilowatt-hour for the first 800 kilowatt-hours per month.
Participants in the City’s municipal electric aggregation program will still receive one bill from Ameren that will include the energy supply charge from Homefield Energy. City of Edwardsville Finance Director, Jeanne Wojcieszak, explains “In order to assist residents to obtain lower prices for electric supply, the City participates in a Municipal Aggregation Program.
The City joins neighboring municipalities to negotiate an electricity rate for those who participate in the program across the participating municipalities. Because we are negotiating for such a large block of customers, we are able to obtain a lower rate than most residents can obtain on their own.
In addition, energy prices fluctuate and supply companies can change their rates, making it difficult for residents to budget their energy costs.”
City Attorney, Jeff Berkbigler, added: “Electric aggregation offers residents a convenient option to manage energy costs by locking in a competitive rate for a 24-month term through December 2022.”
Participation in the Electric Aggregation program is not required. Residential rate customers have two opportunities to “opt-out” of the program. Homefield Energy and Ameren will each contact eligible customers by mail to offer the opportunity to opt-out of electric aggregation at no charge. PAGE 1 OF 2 Opt-out notices is currently being sent to all eligible participants before the start of the new contract. Customers can opt-out by returning the yellow postcard they received or by calling 866-694-1262 by October 30, 2020.
Residents who opt out of the program will remain on their current electric supply choice, whether that is Ameren Basic Generation Service, Power Smart Pricing or another Alternative Retail Electric Supplier. From time to time the City receives reports about aggressive or misleading door-to-door solicitation activity by alternative energy suppliers. These companies are not affiliated with the City’s electric aggregation program.
Any claims made by a solicitor that they are confirming enrollment into the City’s program, the time to act is limited, and/or they must see your utility bill to verify account information is false and should be disregarded. This is possibly a scam. Residents should never feel pressured to take immediate action or compromise their safety by providing their utility account information to anyone unless they are certain they wish to enroll in an alternate program of their choosing.
Solicitors operating in the City of Edwardsville are required to register with the City of Edwardsville Police Department and provide proof of permit when operating in the community. If a resident encounters a solicitor claiming to falsely represent the City of Edwardsville or the aggregation program, the resident should ask to see a valid permit, document the individual’s name, and contact the City of Edwardsville Police Department at (618) 656-2131.
As a reminder, all communications regarding the aggregation program is done through mail. If a resident believes they have been misled or have questions about the municipal electric aggregation program, the resident is encouraged to contact the City Finance Department at (618) 692-7500 or the City Attorney at (618) 656-8806.
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