Boston, MA – 4/30/10 – Survey results released today by the New England Energy Alliance (NEEA) finds that a compelling 88 percent of Connecticut consumers support having competition in the electricity industry.  The survey also finds consumers strongly favor having the choice to buy electricity from alternative electricity suppliers in addition to utility companies.

This sentiment is in sharp contrast to legislation currently under consideration by the Connecticut General Assembly that would dampen competition in Connecticut’s wholesale and retail electricity marketplace which was established more than a decade ago along with four other New England States.

“These results show that a super majority of slightly more than 75 percent of consumers believe that competition among private companies is the best way to lower electricity prices, rather than creating greater state authority over the electricity industry,” said NEEA’s Executive Director Paul G. Afonso.  “The findings offer important guideposts to the legislature regarding the opinion of ratepayers who are also voters.”

The survey also found that 75% of consumers favor maintaining a requirement that electric companies provide information to consumers on how to choose alternative electricity suppliers. The consensus is that consumers need more information rather than less on electricity choice and competition options.

A clear majority of consumers (83 percent) expressed preference for the current billing method of receiving one monthly electric bill, rather than two, if electricity is purchased from an alternative supplier – a change also considered this legislative session.

“The survey also found that 75% of respondents felt it was extremely important that the Legislature focus on job creation and economic development, while just 24% had the same feeling about additional regulation of the electricity companies.   “The Legislature seems out of touch with the concerns of consumers,” said Afonso.

The telephone survey was performed for NEEA by Opinion Dynamics Corporation of Waltham, MA.  Interviewing was conducted between April 14 – 21 among 241 registered voters (consumers) in Connecticut as part of a broader, region-wide survey.  The margin of error on the Connecticut portion of the sample is ±6.3%

The question-by-question results are available on NEEA’s website. (www.newenglandenergyalliance.org).

To contract your electricity now, visit www.bcc-energy.com.

Natural Gas: May ’10 natural gas ended the week at $4.03/mmbtu after jumping above $4.25/mmbtu during intra-day trading on Wednesday, aided by signs of improving economic conditions. On Thursday, prices plunged 21 ½ cents to $3.985/mmbtu, erasing the previous two days gains, after the EIA reported a larger than expected storage injection of 87 Bcf.

While the price drop was small, the markets indicate rising prices are ahead.

Nstar today announced its newly approved electric rates for the  January 1 – June 30 2009.  All prices below are in cents per kilowatt hour.

For fixed price customers:

• Commercial: 12.707
• Industrial NEMA: 10.673
• Industrial SEMA: 11.963

For Variable Price Option

Commercial:

• Jan: 14.228
• Feb: 14.329
• Mar: 12.559
• Apr: 11.849
• May: 11.354
• June: 11.704

Industrial NEMA:

Industrial SEMA

You can eliminate your electricity price risk and save money by locking in your electricity pricing with longer term contracts.  Better Cost Control is a licensed electricity broker that represents all the electricity generation companies in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.  We will obtain the lowest possible prices for your commercial and business electricity requirements.  Contact us at 617-332-7767 x150

The energy market has never been as volatile as it has been recently.  Your company can control your energy costs  through smart hedging strategies that energy contracts can provide.

To the uninformed, energy procurement seems simple.  Quality is not an issue since electricity and gas are always the same when delivered to your facilities.  The problem: energy pricing is complex.  Therefore, it’s not sufficient to just get quotes from three or four energy sales people and then select the one with the best price.

Clients such as the Boston Red Sox, Simmons College, Leviton Manufacturing. WCVB-TV, Plymouth County and Middlesex County turn to Better Cost Control to reduce their energy risk, control their costs, and protect their interests.   As a licensed energy broker working as a business partner, BCC makes quick decisions on their behalf when the timing is right–saving these companies thousands of dollars and eliminating budget risks.

Because energy is a commodity, timing is everything.  Just like stock prices, energy prices fluctuate—but predicting the price direction is even more difficult because the information needed for decision making is hard to interpret.  The experts in energy markets, therefore, make split second buying decisions.  Suppliers then need to add margin to the pricing they quote to cover their bets for future fluctuations measured in fifteen minute increments– rather than hours–since most companies are not prepared to sign the contract quickly.  Even then, their quotes are only good for that day.  For this reason, companies that work with a licensed energy broker—who can make quick decisions for them—pay significantly less for their energy than those that deal directly with energy providers.

Add to this complexity the rules, regulations and a variety of different fees that are specific to each state. There are even some fees that are specific to only certain regions of a state.  Then there is the question of whether your company is even on the correct utility rate. This is based on your historic energy consumption, but you cannot assume you’re your rate is the correct one.

Finally, consider the complexity of arcane contracts that affect how everyone sets their prices.  The price from supplier A may be lower than supplier B, but the contract terms might make supplier B the better deal.  Many companies don’t understand what they are committing to in their contracts. Terms like RMR, ICAP-Tag, Congestion, Capacity, Clearance Price, Capacity Reserve, basis, and LFR don’t have much meaning to most people, but when it come to energy contracts, they matter.

As a licensed energy broker, Better Cost Control can negotiate the best prices for electricity and natural gas. Using our regulatory knowledge and experience, you can be confident of securing the best energy options, regardless of your annual energy budget.

To get energy pricing, contact us  at http://www.bettercostcontrol.com/contact.html