Duke Energy

[Flxratd]

just wondering i got a letter at my shop from duke energy retail sales guaranteeing me 15% savings on my electric bill. they say everything will remain the same(service,repairs,etc) other than me saving money. now who doesnt like to save some coin but i know there has to be a catch. so i was wondering if anyone has done this switch and what there experience has been in both savings and sevice?

thanks scott

[RuffedUpXJ]

Originally Posted by Flxratd

just wondering i got a letter at my shop from duke energy retail sales guaranteeing me 15% savings on my electric bill. they say everything will remain the same(service,repairs,etc) other than me saving money. now who doesnt like to save some coin but i know there has to be a catch. so i was wondering if anyone has done this switch and what there experience has been in both savings and sevice?

thanks scott

We heard something about placing a cut off by our AC unit and Duke will turn it off during peak times in the summer for no more than like an hour at a time.

Now I don't know if this will save us 15% or if it is what you are talking about.

[drmeece]

Ohio's electric utilities are deregulated. Which means in short you can get you eletric service from one of a number of suppliers ( I believe there are 8 approved suppliers)

Duke is tring to retain retail customers. No catch, no change in service,no cut offs.

From what I'm told the 15% off is the best deal out there at the moment.

Hope that helps

[drmeece]

We heard something about placing a cut off by our AC unit and Duke will turn it off during peak times in the summer for no more than like an hour at a time.

Now I don't know if this will save us 15% or if it is what you are talking about.


I believe that is a different program than the one I mentioned above.

[Flxratd]

so do you think it is a wise idea or not. just dont want to do anything i would regret(again ) but 15% is a nice bit of money on a commercial building

[drmeece]

I don't want to tell you what to do. I don't see a downside to it. But I don't know everything about the program. I do know that there are alot of business doing it.

[itbrokeagain]

I dont understand how it is possible that a different company can supply electric to you but Duke still maintains and fixes your lines.

[drmeece]

Originally Posted by itbrokeagain

I dont understand how it is possible that a different company can supply electric to you but Duke still maintains and fixes your lines.

That's deregulation..Ohio deregulated about 8 years ago.

[truk]

call them and ask them to explain the details. ask them for other business that are on the plan and call them . matt

[itbrokeagain]

How does a different electric company get their electric into your house through Duke's lines?

[Green Zuggy]

How does a different electric company get their electric into your house through Duke's lines?

They don't, you still receive the electric from Duke Energy plus a mix from the other utilities. The electric and gas companies sell capacity on their lines and in turn charge a transportation fee.

Imagine a pie chart as a cross section of a electric line where various companies buy "space" in the line. 55% is Duke Energy, 25% is DP&L and 20% is AEP. This makes up the 100% capacity of the line. The other utilities do however feed into the system to fill the line but it is still more of a paperwork transaction.

Sometimes you can get a cheaper rate per kilowatt but what you have to watch out for is the transportation charge by the owner of the line. This is where you can hurt yourself.

Example: You buy electric for $.065/ Kwatt from DP&L and Duke's transportation cost is $.015/Kwatt so your actual cost is $.080/Kwatt if you live in Duke's territory. Duke's price may be $.075/Kwatt and there is no extra charge so you are actually cheaper by staying with Duke at this time.

They file rate cases regularly with Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) so look at the following website for details: http://www.puco.ohio.gov/


Hope this helps...
Jeff

[MrShoeBoy]

I did the A/C cut off thing this past summer. I didnt notice anything other than $30 off my next bill for signing up. Saw no increase or decrease in my bill with them cutting off the A/C during peak times. Didnt notice any change in temp inside my house, but then again I am at work most days. The flyier about getting a lower rate per kwh is a trick. As pointed out above, the actual rate maybe lower but you are still paying Duke who owns the power lines a fee for delivery so it may end up higher than if you get it all from Duke.

AARON

[Nuts]

You could always go solar....

http://www.affordable-solar.com/commercial.solar.htm