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Council hears public hearing on joining NOPEC electricity aggregation; presenters cite modest rate savings and member grants
Summary
At a Feb. 24 public hearing, city staff, broker Brenda Fargo and NOPECs Ross Macdonald outlined an electricity aggregation proposal that would lower the citys 12-month rate to 9.486c/kWh, create onboarding grants and run on an opt-out basis with a 21-day window for residents to decline.
The City of Green held a public hearing on Feb. 24 about two related ordinances that would join the Northeast Ohio Public Energy Councils (NOPEC) electricity aggregation program and adopt its plan of operation. Service Director Valerie Waxcar introduced the item and said the city is already a NOPEC natural-gas member and has been evaluating options for electric aggregation.
The broker, Brenda Fargo, said the city conducted a full RFP and received bids from two companies. "Of those responses, the best price was from NOPEC," Fargo said, and NOPECs price for a 12-month term was lower than the competing bid. Ross Macdonald, NOPECs director of expansion, told council the program would set a 12-month rate for Green at about "9.486 per kilowatt hour." He said communities joining as new electric members qualify for a $10,000 unrestricted onboarding grant and an increased annual grant the city can use for energy-efficiency projects.
Macdonald described the program as an opt-out aggregation: "In order to participate, you have to do nothing," he said, and explained residents would receive notice and have a 21-day opt-out window. He emphasized that customers currently under individual retail contracts would remain with their providers until those contracts expire and would not be automatically reassigned.
Council members asked about market volatility and contract length. Fargo said recent market swings reduced the number of responsive bidders to two and that a 36-month offer priced markedly higher, making long-term locking unpalatable in the current market. Macdonald said uncertainty from new large power draws (for example, planned data centers) keeps prices volatile and counseled a year-by-year approach for now.
Councilors and staff discussed consumer protections and education. Macdonald and the citys broker said NOPEC would run outreach and bill-review clinics, particularly for seniors and residents who did not shop the retail market. Fargo cautioned residents to use independent comparison tools and watch for fees and early-termination terms from retail sales representatives.
The hearing closes as council prepares to take the ordinances to committee for further questions and possible votes on a future meeting agenda. The intergovernmental and utilities committee requested time to continue NOPEC discussion on March 10.
