Libertyville Looks for Cheaper Electricity

Libertyville officials are looking for cheaper electricity than Commonwealth Edison and could join a growing number of Illinois towns that are doing so. The village, however, would first need residents’ approval.

On Tuesday night, village trustees heard a presentation by Northern Illinois Municipal Electric Collaborative (NIMEC) on how it could buy electricity as a group and negotiate better prices on electric supplies on behalf of village residents and small businesses.

“In the communities we have worked with, we are saving residents on average $160 to $175 per year, that’s 20 percent to 25 percent less than Commonwealth Edison’s energy rate,” said David A. Hoover, executive director of NIMEC, during the Special Projects meeting.

NIMEC, which already works with the village on negotiating contracts for waste disposal, has experience working with 12 communities to buy bulk electricity supply for residents. Most of the communities are in southern Illinois, according to Hoover.

Option to Choose Other Power Suppliers

In 2010, the Illinois General Assembly, amended the law so municipalities could use other electricity power suppliers than ComEd.

Communities like Lincolnwood have already passed a referenda in the April election to allow them to seek other power suppliers.

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Requires Residents' Approval

For Libertyville, the possibility of cheaper electricity is still a while a way. Voters would have to pass a referendum giving the village authority to solicit bids from other power companies. The next chance for that is the March primary.

The village can only solicit bids for the power generation portion of the electric bill; ComEd will still be dealing with power distribution and handling monthly bills for Libertyville residents. Residents would still call ComEd if services were interrupted.

If a referendum passes, the village could still choose to purchase power from ComEd. Residents or small businesses could also choose to keep their original power supplier even if the village is working with another power supplier.

If the referendum doesn’t pass, the village would not have the authority to solicit bids and find out who has the cheapest electricity price and will have to work with ComEd.

Trustee Moran Likes Idea

“I’m pretty sold on this personally,” said Trustee Jim Moran during the meeting, “The next step is we take a look at what other options there are out there and not have buyers remorse.”

Village officials say they will be researching options on which company to work with to solicit bids and would like to have a recommendation for the village board before November 15.

For more information on municipal aggregation of electricity, visit: www.ElectricAggregation.org