Pennsylvania Surpasses 1 Million Choice Customers

Pennsylvania’s competitive electricity market crossed a major milestone this week, with 1 million customers actively shopping and choosing their electricity provider. Since rate caps expired across the state at the beginning of the year, nearly 300,000 new accounts were established, the clearest indication yet that Pennsylvania customers are embracing competition.
 
“The number of Pennsylvania customers shopping for electricity underscores the many benefits that competition is delivering to the state, including greater efficiency in generation and stability in prices,” said Robert Powelson, Chairman of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission. “Now that Pennsylvania is fully open to competition, the state’s competitive market is thriving and is one of the most dynamic in the nation.”
 
A recent report by PennFuture — a COMPETE member considered Pennsylvania’s leading environmental advocacy organization — highlights how competition is reducing rates across the state. In 1996, Pennsylvania’s electric rates were 15 percent higher than the national average, according to the report. But in 2010, electricity rates were 5 percent lower than the national average, the researchers concluded.
 
Competition is also spurring innovation and investment in renewable power sources. Both wind and solar energy are thriving in the state because the competitive market structure offers a wide geographic foot print with diverse resources to accommodate variable generation output and easy access to long-distance transmission. Indeed, Pennsylvania is one of a handful of states leading the way in solar energy capacity, according to a recent report by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). 
 
With the entire commonwealth now open to competition, Pennsylvania joins states across the country that maintain successful well-structured electricity markets to empower customers and deliver high-quality service at competitive rates. Shopping in competitive markets like Pennsylvania ensures providers are more innovative and efficient in order to attract customers. As a result, more than 1 million Pennsylvania consumers are now benefiting from high-quality service and unique products at the most competitive prices. 
 

Joel Malina | March 25, 2011