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Ameren

Ameren gas rates go up, MidAmerican’s drop

Ameren Illinois’ natural gas rates went up more than 3.5 cents per therm from last month, while MidAmerican Energy customers saw their rates fall about 5 cents. Gas utilities Peoples Gas and North Shore Gas prices fell about a penny, and Nicor Gas increased by a penny. The price per…...

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Q&A on the ComEd and Ameren Formula Rates for 2021 

What happened?  On Wednesday, Dec. 9, the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) approved delivery rate cuts for Ameren Illinois and ComEd customers. The ICC voted to give ComEd a delivery rate decrease of about $14 million.  The state regulatory body OK’d a decrease of about $48.7 million for Ameren. The lower…...

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A CUB How-To: Downloading Your Bills

CUB often encourages consumers to sign up for online billing through their utility. It’s convenient and easy, and there are oftentimes perks or programs that are only available through an online account. But navigating a new online space can be confusing, so CUB staffer Cate put together a few videos…...

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October gas prices up from last month, down from 2019

The winter heating season is upon us, but while natural gas prices are up from last month, many utilities are charging less than they did last October.  Still, there’s bad news from one of the state’s biggest utilities: Crain’s Chicago Business reports that winter bills for Peoples Gas, which serves…...

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Most reliable way to save money on your bills? Energy efficiency

This Wednesday is Energy Efficiency Day, and as you probably know, CUB is a big believer in efficiency.  Energy efficiency isn’t about sacrifice or a drop in productivity. It’s the practice of using less energy to perform the same tasks you normally do, such as doing the laundry or charging…...

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New Power Prices for Ameren, ComEd Customers

As of October 1, ComEd and Ameren are updating their electricity supply prices to reflect non-summer pricing. According to the companies, these are the new Ameren and ComEd prices through May 2021: Ameren (for people living in Ameren’s geographic service territory) Usage of 0 to 800 kilowatt-hours (kWh): 4.542 cents per kWh*…...

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CUB review: Many community power deals no longer money savers

There was a time when municipal aggregation–electricity deals that local leaders negotiate for residents of a community–secured savings for consumers, but a new CUB review has found that most deals are no longer beating the utility rate. As of July 31, just 78 of the 555 total active municipal aggregation deals in…...

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Consumer losses from alternative electric suppliers exceed $1 billion

Illinois has reached a grim milestone in the history of electric competition in the state: Residential consumers have now lost more than $1 billion to alternative electric suppliers since 2015, according to a new report from the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC).  More than 1.67 million ratepayers are signed up with…...

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Real-Time Pricing: Another way to save–just ask CUB staffers

Most people pay an electricity rate that only changes a few times a year, but real-time pricing offers a different way to pay for electricity. Instead of charging a standard price per kilowatt-hour, the utility charges program participants a supply rate that changes each hour.  ComEd offers real-time pricing through…...

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Consumer advocates fight for extended COVID-19 protections for utility customers

After a historic agreement between consumer advocates and Illinois’ major utilities, state regulators are now considering the most comprehensive COVID-19 utility relief measures in the country. This plan could serve as a national model for helping utility customers struggling to pay their bills during the worst economic crisis since the…...

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