The city of Elgin has announced it has signed a two-year contract making Direct Energy Services, LLC the city’s new residential and small business electricity supplier.

Direct Energy Services participated in an open RFP process after Elgin passed a referendum in March giving the city permission to seek lower electricity supply rates.
“The city of Elgin continues to seek ways to help its residents and small businesses promote energy conservation and save money with sustainable initiatives,” said Mayor David Kaptain. “The best part of the Direct Energy Services’ contract is that it requires 100 percent green, renewable energy,” he added.
Under the terms of the agreement, residents and eligible small businesses that remain in the program, which is expected to be effective Sept. 1, will be charged at a fixed rate of 4.915 cents per kilowatt hour compared to ComEd’s current average annual supply rate of 7.73 cents per kilowatt hour.
City Manager Sean Stegall said this means Elgin residents and eligible small businesses will initially receive an approximately 37 percent savings on their electric supply pricing compared to the current ComEd supply pricing.
ComEd’s supply rate may fluctuate during the term of the two year agreement so the actual electric supply savings to Elgin customers may be more or less than Direct Energy Services’ price of 4.915 cents per kilowatt hour.
The city’s consultant, Independent Energy Consultants, Inc. (IEC), facilitated the bidding process.
“The results of the bid were very favorable for the city,” Stegall said. “The energy market is very competitive so the city was not only able to negotiate a low rate, but our residents and eligible small businesses will also receive no penalty for early termination, even after the opt-out period ends. If residents or small businesses are not happy with Direct Energy Services’ pricing, they can revert back to ComEd or another supplier,” said Stegall.
Stegall said more information about the change will be available on the city’s website and will also be sent out to residents and eligible small businesses in the coming weeks. Residents and eligible small businesses will be given the opportunity to opt-out of the program before it starts. Switching from ComEd to Direct Energy Services will be completely seamless and there will be no service interruption. ComEd will continue to be responsible for the delivery of electricity, maintenance and will respond to power outages.
“Bills will continue to come from ComEd with Direct Energy Services being listed as the supplier on the bill,” said Stegall.
Stegall noted that the city council had expressed some concern about whether people who signed up with other electricity supply companies, recently soliciting within the city, will find out about the Direct Energy rate.
Stegall said only residents who currently have ComEd as their supplier will receive a notice about Direct Energy Services. He agreed, however, to make sure information about the rate and service is provided to city residents through the city’s various media outlets.
Residents with suppliers other than ComEd may be allowed to join the city’s program at the discretion of Direct Energy Services, but they may face fees from their current suppliers if they terminate their contract early. “They will need to check with that supplier and Direct Energy Services to determine what steps are necessary to make this transition,” Stegall added.
Direct Energy is one of North America’s largest energy and energy-related services providers with more than 6 million residential and commercial customer relationships. Direct Energy provides customers with choice and support in managing their energy costs through a portfolio of innovative products and services.

Aurora also gets set for switch­— The city of Aurora is reminding residents and small business owners of how the recently approved electrical aggregation program operates.
Officials are reinforcing that residents do not have to do a thing in order to take advantage of the program, which will save the average household an estimated 25 percent monthly – or $300 per year – on their electric bills beginning in August.
On May 24, the Aurora City Council approved First Energy Solutions as the city’s new electrical supplier. 
First Energy’s bid of 4.71 cents per kilowatt hour is well below Commonwealth Edison’s (ComEd) current average summer rate of 7.03 cents and non-summer rate of 8.53 cents.  First Energy’s rate is good for two years, the term of the contract signed with the city, and is expected to result in an estimated $30 million savings for Aurorans in that timeframe.