North Center Energy Bills Should Shrink Under Approved Plan

The Chicago City Council approved a new energy plan on Wednesday and savings could start showing up almost immediately, reports say.

Following in the footsteps of suburbs across Illinois, Chicago is moving away from ComEd in favor of a new electrical supplier in an effort to save money. Chicago energy will now be secured through Integrys, a sister of Peoples Gas, the Chicago Tribune reports.

ComEd will still handle outages, repairs and billing.

"By buying electricity in bulk, we have secured an agreement that will put money back into the pockets of Chicago families and small businesses while ensuring that our electricity comes from cleaner sources,” said Mayor Rahm Emanuel in a news release. “I commend the City Council for approving and implementing the agreement on an expedited time frame, so we can start delivering savings.” 

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Emanuel estimates the switch will save Chicagoans between 20 to 25 percent on their electrical bills for the first six months of 2013. The city estimates savings will average out to 8 to 12 percent over the life of the contract, which lasts until May 2015. 

Integrys will go out to bid on behalf of the city and will attempt to lock down the lowest rate possible in their bulk energy purchase. The purchase could happen as soon as today, the Tribune reports.

All residents will be automatically switched over, however there will be a 14 day window during which residents can choose to opt-out. Residents will also be able to opt-out after the switch at anytime without a penalty.  

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