Lake Zurich Goes Green with Electricity
-Chooses 100% Renewable Green Power Option-
The Village of Lake Zurich is pleased to announce it has joined an increasing number of local governments committed to addressing climate change at the local level by joining a 100% Green Electric Aggregation Program with Chicago-based MC Squared Energy Services. The new program includes a 13-month term effective from July 1, 2023 to August 1, 2024.
This electricity supply rate will be locked-in at 7.95¢ per kWh for this 13-month term, offering residents the choice to support renewable green energy at a bulk-purchase aggregation rate far cheaper than individual homeowners can find on their own. This new aggregation program allows Lake Zurich to advance important environmental sustainability goals by guaranteeing all electricity obtained through it will be green sustainable energy produced by Midwest-located wind, solar, and hydroelectric facilities.
In the past few months, electricity rates have decreased across the board. The 100% Green Electric rate of 7.95¢ per kWh is 21% less expensive compared to the ComEd rate over the past year (period of June 1 2022 – May 31, 2023) of 10.15¢ per kWh, which is what the majority of Lake Zurich residents and small businesses have been paying over the last year. However, starting on June 1, 2023, ComEd rates are decreasing even more to an annualized rate of 7.1¢ per kWh plus a monthly floating Purchased Electricity Adjustment (PEA) fee that can increase up to 0.5¢ per kWh for the next year (period of June 1 2023 – May 31, 2024).
With Lake Zurich’s 100% Green Electric Aggregation Program, your billing and service will remain the same, as always. You will continue to receive one monthly invoice from ComEd. ComEd will continue to be responsible for wires, poles, and all emergencies, including outage restoration. This new locked-in rate impacts only the "supply" portion of your ComEd bill, not the total bill. The "delivery" and "taxes / fees" portion of your ComEd bill do not change by switching electricity suppliers or participating in aggregation programs.
Nobody is required to participate in the program and any individual homeowner can join or leave the program without a penalty. There is no additional month fee to participate in this program and there is never an enrollment or switch fee.
This 100% Green Electric Aggregation Program supports clean, renewable energy development by providing Lake Zurich with electric supply and Renewable Energy Certificates (“RECs”). 100% of power consumed will be “green” sustainable energy produced by Midwest-located wind farms, solar, and hydroelectric facilities as represented in Renewable Energy Certificates (“RECs”) to be used on behalf of the Village residents. An REC is a market-based instrument that represents the property rights to the environmental, social and other non-power attributes of renewable electricity generation.
Under municipal aggregation, local officials bring citizens together to gain group buying power for the purchase of competitively priced electricity from an alternative electric supplier. Lake Zurich voters approved a referendum in 2012 for the Village to participate in electric supply aggregation. Lake Zurich homeowners and small businesses have participated with municipal aggregation from 2012 until today, with the benefits being residential savings, civic contributions from suppliers, as well as the support of renewable energy.