CLEVELAND (WJW) – The price of electricity is expected to rise later this spring, promoting guidance from experts on the best ways to shop around to save money.
“Starting in June, there’s going to be new energy rates taking effect across most of Ohio,” said Matt Schilling, office of public affairs director for the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio.
Some customers could see an estimated $30 increase in their bill, Schilling said. Based on data, the average Ohioan consumes 800 kilowatt-hours per month.
“It’s important to know this won’t impact everybody,” he said. “These are for customers of Ohio Edison, Toledo Edison and Cleveland Electric Illuminating Company.”
According to FirstEnergy, customers enrolled in government aggregations or enrolled directly with retail suppliers will not be impacted by the change.
The average wholesale auction weighted price for electricity per megawatt hour is $53 soon it will jump to $101.
Schilling said the increase is not unique to Ohio.
“Energy prices across the globe have been elevated over the last year or so and it’s a number of factors,” said Schilling. “There’s global conflict going on in Europe that’s diverting a lot of natural gas over there, and natural gas is actually a chief way that here in America that we generate electricity.”
A FirstEnergy spokesperson released the following statement:
“Ohio is a deregulated state, and while FirstEnergy’s Ohio utilities are responsible for delivering electricity to your home or business, they do not generate that electricity. That’s the role of an energy supplier. Customers can shop among a wide range of competitive energy suppliers for electric generation, which typically represents about half of a customer’s monthly bill. Our Ohio utilities do not profit from the generation portion of a customer’s bill.”
Schilling encourages customers to visit energychoice.ohio.gov to compare prices.
“There’s a whole host of information on there to help the consumer make comparisons and make the right choice for them to ensure that they’re getting the best deal they can,” said Schilling.
FirstEnergy reports shopping around could result in savings and advises customers to consider energy price, plan structure depending on a fixed or variable rate, contract terms and conditions, along with taxes and additional fees that may apply.