EcoSmart Choice enables participating member communities to extend the benefits of renewable generation to their customers, regardless of their power supply mix. Green pricing programs such as this rely on the use of renewable energy certificates (RECs) to offset the customer’s electricity usage. The program is open to both residential and commercial/industrial customers.

Residential customers who choose to join EcoSmart Choice are able to offset 100 percent of their electric usage with renewable energy for an additional 1.3 cents per kWh. For example, if a customer uses 750 kWh in a month, the EcoSmart Choice program will purchase an equal number of RECs to match that monthly usage, and the customer would pay an additional $9.75 as part of their utility bill that month to cover their participation in the program.

Commercial/industrial customers can offset a portion of their electric usage through the purchase of “blocks” of RECs. Each “block” obtained through the EcoSmart Choice program is equal to 1,000 kWh (1 MWh) and is available for an additional $13 per block. For example, if a company uses 10,000 kWh in a month and wants to offset 20 percent of that total with renewable energy, it would purchase 2 blocks through the EcoSmart Choice program at an additional cost of $26 for that month.

National statistics show a strong corollary between overall utility customer satisfaction and programs that allow the customer to choose to support renewable energy. Because EcoSmart Choice is also available to commercial and industrial customers to offset a portion of their electricity purchases, the program enables participating member electric systems to offer an additional benefit to retain those customers as well as attract new businesses to the community.

Benefits to Member Communities include:

• AMP-Ohio works with billing departments to make sure that tracking the Eco-Smart Choice customers is simple and straightforward.
• AMP-Ohio develops and provides to billing departments monthly reporting forms and protocols.
• AMP-Ohio provides marketing materials to help promote the program with customers.
• AMP-Ohio works with member communities if special mailings, newspaper articles, or other communication pieces are needed.

For more information on EcoSmart Choice, please contact Julia Blankenship, manager of clean energy development and sustainability, at (614) 337-6222 or send e-mail to jblankenship@amp-ohio.org.