Where’s Minnesota’s electricity choice?
Remember when competition amongst competitors was relied on to lower cost, provide innovation and serve consumers.
Allowing customers to be served directly from the wholesale markets for their natural gas and electricity has lowered costs, provided innovation and is serving millions of customers.
States around Minnesota such as; Illinois, Indiana and Michigan all have some customer choice programs in place.
Minnesota does not.
Minnesota has only a monopoly; a government regulated utility. Customers have no choice, the government oversees the utility to set the price of power and the government oversees that they are charging the correct amount.
So Minnesota’s monopoly utility wants to spend $800 million to build a new power plant and wants to be repaid for it regardless of whether it delivers any energy.
Minnesotans should look to other states to see how customer choice completion works for consumer’s not politicians or the monopoly utility.
The government does not regulate the wholesale energy markets and they are not needed to regulate the retail energy markets. Customer choice allows business to deliver wholesale power directly to customer.
Minnesota consumers deserve the benefits of cost savings and innovation from customer choice. They do not need a regulated monopoly that is government regulated deciding their energy choices.
Realgy Energy Services is a registered Retail Energy Marketer in the states of Illinois, Michigan and Indiana. We offer Service Plans that will provide electric and natural gas at wholesale pricing direct to customers without any utility markup. Our Service Plans work with the local utility to provide seamless service and annual energy savings. Service Plans include Guaranteed SavingsTM, ManagedPriceTM, ManagedGreenTM Index, Fixed and PriceAssuranceTM.
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Ridgeland Recreation Complex completes installation of its solar power project.
The Park District of Oak Park’s Ridgeland Common Recreation Complex will soon be powered by 100 kW of solar energy. Realgy, LLC announced the installation of a 100.8 kilowatt (kWDC) solar photovoltaic (PV) system for the Rec Center which houses an indoor ice rink and outdoor pool serving the Oak Park community.
The solar PV system is being installed on the roof of the ice rink. Jan Arnold, Executive Director of the PDOP stated: “The Solar system will reduce not only our operating expenses but our carbon foot print. The park district is always looking to expand solar opportunities to increase sustainability as well as improve our overall environmental conditions.” This project will help to make the building a LEED Certified Gold Building, the first of its kind in the Chicago area.
The solar PV system is being installed by Eco Solar Solutions of Morton Grove, Illinois. “Ridgeland has a relatively new metal roof with southern exposure making it an ideal candidate for solar,” said Terry Black, Director of Business Development for Eco Solar Solutions. “When the center is using the most electricity during the summer months, the system will be producing at its peak. This projects fits in perfectly with the sustainable efforts of everyone involved in the project.”
Realgy, LLC is an alternative energy service supplier in Illinois and is the owner of 6 solar PV systems, including our newest at Ridgeland. Realgy is paying for the installation so as to generate renewable energy locally as part of its sustainable commitment in Illinois.
The Ridgeland PV Solar system will produce over 125,000 kilowatt hours (kWh) of energy annually and more than 3.1 million kWh over the next 25 years. That is enough energy to power over 12 average Illinois homes annually. Beyond the economic value are the environmental and health benefits associated with the PV system. Consider the following:
- Reduction of 337,500 lbs. of coal burned each year to produce an equal amount of electricity. That is the same as getting 337 pickup trucks of coal off the road.
- Substituting the use of coal means the removal of 87,500 lbs. of CO2 into the environment each year. That is the equivalent of planting 6,731 trees.
“We expect to complete the installation by Christmas,” said Michael Vrtis, President of Realgy, LLC. “The Ridgeland PV project builds on our commitment of reducing the cost and providing the environmental benefits of renewable energy to our customers in Illinois.”
Realgy entered into a long term agreement with the Park District under which the District pays nothing for the Solar PV system, its installation or maintenance. Ridgeland simply remains a customer of Realgy and pays only the market-based cost of power it uses (averaging 5% below COMED rates). In addition, the Park District will receive a discount of about 10% as a result of having the solar energy displace energy that would otherwise be delivered (and charged) by COMED.
Contacts:
Chris Lindgren
Superintendent of Buildings and Grounds
218 Madison St
Oak Park, Il 60302
708-725-2050
chris.lindgren@pdop.com
ECO SOLAR Solutions, LLC.
Paul Szczesny, President
847-220-8786
paul@eco-solar-solutions.com
www.eco-solar-solutions.com
Realgy Energy Services, LLC
Michael Vrtis, President
675 Oakwood Avenue
West Hartford, CT
860-233-2270
www.realgyenergyservices.com
Innovation is key to making clean energy more attractive
So, if current energy usage cannot continue without making Earth uninhabitable, what should we do?
How about offering $1,000,000,000,000 (one billion dollars) to find alternative energy sources.
Some of the wealthy people on earth (Bill Gates, Jack Ma and Jeff Bezos) have contributed to a fund to help develop alternative energy technology. For instance, the price of solar energy has decreased by over 500% in the last 5 years. So much so, that it is nearly economic with fossil fuel.
However, if you question whether climate change is occurring consider this insurance. Reducing emissions will improve the environment and perhaps it will cost no more than what we currently do.
The power of economic incentive providing the means for inventive people to improve lives and perhaps sustain life on earth. Win –Win.
Realgy Energy Services is a registered Retail Energy Marketer in the states of Illinois, Michigan and Indiana. We offer Service Plans that will provide electric and natural gas at wholesale pricing direct to customers without any utility markup. Our Service Plans work with the local utility to provide seamless service and annual energy savings. Service Plans include Guaranteed SavingsTM, ManagedPriceTM, ManagedGreenTM Index, Fixed and PriceAssuranceTM.
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Energy bills head to lame-duck showdown; House Republicans, biz groups split
A Michigan energy bill.
This has been the stuff of legend. Like seeing the Abominable Snowman!
So the energy bill passed the senate with bi-partisan approval and is before the House; which is seeing an army of lobbyist. It includes:
1. Increase in renewable support from 15 to 21% (not that big a change)
2. Lifted caps on energy efficiency spending by utilities (think higher rates)
3. Eliminates competition amongst wholesale electric energy suppliers (think utility monopoly is only choice). Currently only 10% of residents can get pricing direct from wholesale suppliers. They want to eliminate even this.
The utilities want these changes, most public advocates and companies and business groups DO NOT.
Which side do you think represents your interests?
Realgy Energy Services is a registered Retail Energy Marketer in the states of Illinois, Michigan and Indiana. We offer Service Plans that will provide electric and natural gas at wholesale pricing direct to customers without any utility markup. Our Service Plans work with the local utility to provide seamless service and annual energy savings. Service Plans include Guaranteed SavingsTM, ManagedPriceTM, ManagedGreenTM Index, Fixed and PriceAssuranceTM
Additional Information: https://mibiz.com/item/24225-energy-bills-head-to-lame-duck-showdown-house-republicans,-biz-groups-split
Key compromises reached on Illinois energy bill, advocates say
Illinois compromise…..for a state that hasn’t passed a budget in nearly 2 years, those are startling words.
So what has been compromised?
- Exelon will get a paid a subsidy to keep open 2 nuclear power plants they have threaten to close
- Solar will retain a net-metering
- Residential customers will not have to face a demand charge
- Energy efficiency targets improve
So who wins? Perhaps Illinois rate payers and residents.
A compromise is never one sided and this shows that each side can claim victory without getting everything they wanted.
Realgy Energy Services is a registered Retail Energy Marketer in the states of Illinois, Michigan and Indiana. We offer Service Plans that will provide electric and natural gas at wholesale pricing direct to customers without any utility markup. Our Service Plans work with the local utility to provide seamless service and annual energy savings. Service Plans include Guaranteed SavingsTM, ManagedPriceTM, ManagedGreenTM Index, Fixed and PriceAssuranceTM.
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Public Power: An Industry in Flux
The power industry has been adjusting to the abundance of natural gas (from fracking) and its impact on the power industry cannot be understated. Nearly every major new stationary power plant built in the last 8 years has been powered by natural gas. And, during this same period we have had wind and solar power competing and winning. Wind and solar allow an investment to be made and for 20 years generate electricity with little maintenance and no emissions.
The combination of inexpensive natural gas and greater efficiency of solar and wind is changing power companies.
Consider Nebraska: the only state that gets 100% of its power from publicly owned power companies (the state residents own the power plants).
They closed one of their nuclear power plants citing that it is not competitive with low gas prices and regulatory costs. The replacement power is expected to be …1,200MW of wind!
That is extraordinary given that Nebraska is next door to one of the least expensive coal production in the US in Wyoming.
However, the wind resource in Nebraska combined with the wind technology will continue to offer alternatives to coal, nuclear and gas.
Realgy Energy Services is a registered Retail Energy Marketer in the states of Illinois, Michigan and Indiana. We offer Service Plans that will provide electric and natural gas at wholesale pricing direct to customers without any utility markup. Our Service Plans work with the local utility to provide seamless service and annual energy savings. Service Plans include Guaranteed SavingsTM, ManagedPriceTM, ManagedGreenTM Index, Fixed and PriceAssuranceTM.
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