East Windsor Exploring Energy Aggregation Program

By: Megan Malloy

East Windsor could be among the first municipalities in New Jersey to use a third-party provider for their energy supply which could save residents up to 15 percent on their energy bills.

Stephen Thayer of Jersey Energy Group explained how municipalities can purchase their energy from an entity other than their local utility in a presentation to the East Windsor Township Council last week. Since deregulation was passed in New Jersey in 2003, municipalities can bundle residential usages and purchase electricity in industrial loads, Thayer said.

The only aspect of energy supply that would change would be the supplier of the actual commodities, according to Thayer. The contract would be awarded to the lowest bid from third-party suppliers.  

“You can have a JCP&L bill and have all the delivery charges, and then for the actual commodity, which is roughly 60-65 percent of your bill, it will say another supplier on the actual commodity charge,” Thayer explained. “At times, you can get that for a lower cost than the utility is offering.”

If East Windsor Township decides to investigate the energy supply program, residents would be able to opt out and the service would not change for them. However, only about 5 percent of residents have chosen not to participate in the program in the past, according to Thayer. There is no minimum percentage of resident participation required to begin the program and residents will always have the option to switch back to their local utility company with no penalty fees if they are unhappy with the service, Thayer said.