With voter authorization in hand, the Select Board is advancing the work needed to establish a new option for residents to obtain electricity. Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) is a state permitted process by which a community can seek competitive pricing from electricity providers and replace the “standard offer” that National Grid provides with the chosen alternative supplier.
By pooling the purchasing power of all property owners and by seeking competitive bids a CCA option typically results in an 8-10% savings on electric supply costs and avoids the seasonal cost swings of the standard offer.
Under a CCA, the only aspect of the electric service to you that changes is the supplier. For Manchester residents, National Grid remains the deliverer of the electricity over their transmission lines. Your electric bill will still come from National Grid. National Grid is solely a distribution company, they do not generate electricity. They merely pass along the cost of electricity they obtain from their suppliers unless you decide to choose a different supplier. You can do this on your own (which is why you may get solicitations in the mail for choosing an electrical supplier) or, now through a CCA, choose the supplier the Town will choose. A CCA has the advantage of obtaining a supplier through a competitive bidding process for a set contract period that the Town’s advisor will recommend and continually monitor for the most advantageous pricing.
The Town has teamed up with the Colonial Power Group (CPG), a Massachusetts-based firm that specializes in CCAs. They are the largest provider of municipal aggregation services in the state and have assisted nearly 100 communities set up their programs, from the City of Boston to the small Berkshire Hills community of Becket.
A CCA must be approved by the state. Our consultant will assist in the crafting of the aggregation plan and required supporting documentation. We hope to submit this plan for preliminary review in October. The draft plan outlines the proposed CCA and the different options it might offer (typically three options – a standard portfolio of electricity sources, an improved, semi- “green” portfolio, or a 100% green portfolio. The “greener” portfolios tend to be a bit more expensive though that is changing.) After a public comment period the plan is submitted for final approval by the Department of Public Utilities.
Under a new process soon to be created, DPU has 120 days to review and approve our proposed CCA, including a formal public hearing. Thus, we can expect final approval early next spring. Once approved, our consultant, CPG, will seek bids from potential suppliers. These bids will be reviewed with the Select Board and, assuming we are satisfied with one of the bids, a supplier will be chosen (otherwise we wait and go back out to bid another time when we think conditions would be more favorable.)
With a supplier and pricing in hand, a comprehensive public information/customer notification effort gets underway. By law, municipal aggregation programs must be run as an “opt-out” program. This means residents must actively reply that they do not want to participate. If one does not opt out, then you are automatically enrolled in the program. A resident can opt-out or opt-in at any time. There is never a penalty for doing so. Those with solar panels on their roofs can participate like anyone else.
Our consultant runs the entire program for the Town at no cost to town government (they receive 1/10th of a cent for each kilowatt hour consumers use.) We also have the option of another 1/10th of a cent surcharge, which would raise about $20,000 a year, to help pay for energy efficiency and climate resiliency work.
We expect to be offering the municipal aggregation program to residents next spring or early summer. Periodic progress reports will keep you posted on the progress.
