Nearly one in ten Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. customers is now buying power from a source other than the utility, BGE said Monday.
About 75,000 residential customers and 25,000 commercial and industrial customers, of BGE’s 1.2 million customers in total, have shopped around for cheaper electricity. BGE estimates that 40 percent of the actual supply of electricity being used in the region is coming through competitive energy suppliers, however.
An increase in competition can, in theory, lead to lower electricity prices. Gov. Martin O’Malley has pushed for an end to electricity competition in Maryland, saying it hasn’t developed enough to save residents money. The proposal has been slow-moving in the General Assembly’s 2010 session, which ends in April.
BGE officials encourage customers to shop around for cheaper electricity. While the utility was once more of an energy generator, it’s now largely focused on electricity distribution and doesn’t make money off of the sale of electricity. It buys power in large batches several times a year to sell on to customers.
“When competition is given time to develop, the marketplace responds with lower prices and customers reap the benefits,” Mark D. Case, BGE senior vice president of strategy and regulatory affairs, said in a statement.
Electricity suppliers offering service in BGE’s service area include BGE Home, Commerce Energy Inc., Clean Currents, Dominion Retail Inc., Washington Gas Energy Services, and ProEnergy Consultants. Standard BGE electricity is being sold at 11.97 cents per kilowatt hour, while power is being sold for as little as 10.25 cents per kilowatt hour under a two-year contract from BGE Home. BGE Home, like BGE, is a subsidiary of Baltimore energy giant Constellation Energy Group Inc. (NYSE: CEG).
