CUSTOMERS CAN SAVE UP TO 10% ON ELECTRICITY GENERATION THROUGH COMMUNITY POWER
SAN DIEGO – As part of its ongoing efforts to provide clean energy at the greatest possible value for its customers, the San Diego Community Power Board of Directors today approved electricity generation rates that will create the largest discount compared to San Diego Gas & Electric in the agency’s five years serving customers.
The new electricity generation rates will provide a 4% rate discount for customers who are on the default PowerOn service compared to SDG&E’s standard service. Customers who have opted into PowerBase, Community Power’s most affordable service option, will receive a 10% discount compared to SDG&E.
Residential customers who select Power100, Community Power’s 100% renewable energy service option, will pay about $1.30 more per month than SDG&E bundled customers, who receive 41% renewable energy, based on the latest Power Content Label.
“Community Power is offering the biggest discount in our history because we put our customers first,” said Community Power CEO Karin Burns. “One of our goals as a not-for-profit is to make electricity as affordable as we can even despite the challenges of a volatile energy market. We have taken a responsible approach that provides the lowest prices possible while also ensuring that we can serve our customers for decades to come.”
Electricity costs statewide are increasing due to market volatility and a significant rise in the fee SDG&E and other investor-owned utilities collect from all customers to cover long-term power contracts previously signed on their behalf.
For Community Power customers, this translates to a monthly average generation cost increase of 66 cents for PowerBase and $2.78 for PowerOn residential customers. Those looking for savings can opt into PowerBase.
“Costs for just about everything continue climb, so Community Power designed these rates to blunt the impact for as many customers as possible,” Burns said. “These rates ensure we can recover the costs of electricity and we are committed to encouraging our customers to take advantage of money-saving opportunities.”
Beginning on March 1, customers are encouraged to take advantage of new “super off-peak” pricing from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., when energy demand is low and solar supply is high. These “super off-peak” rates are about 40 percent lower than on-peak energy prices – giving customers a significant opportunity to reduce their bills.
Despite Community Power’s efforts to increase customer savings, the energy market still presents challenges. There is an extremely tight market on resource adequacy, which is required by the state of California to serve as a sort of “back up” power for periods, like heat waves, when there is a higher-than-usual strain on the grid.
Additionally, due to a number of market forces, short-term renewable energy prices have also increased significantly in the past few years.
Community Power is mitigating these short-term challenges by executing long-term contracts through power purchase agreements and energy storage service agreements that will help blunt the effects of market swings and create price certainty for renewable energy and resource adequacy in future years. To date, Community Power has entered into 30 of these agreements that will provide predictably-priced, reliable, renewable energy for over 1.2 million homes.
In 2022, Community Power’s board of directors approved a rate development policy, which acts as a guide for staff to make recommendations to the board of directors about electricity generation rates.
This standalone policy was the first of its kind for a Community Choice Aggregation program in California. It provides the framework for staff and the Board to ensure the rate design and development process remains focused on competitive pricing and transparency, while creating necessary financial strength to bring long-term benefits to customers.
Community Power must set rates, at a minimum, to recover costs associated with the purchase of power, operational costs and debt service. Community Power’s electricity costs comprise more than 90% of its total budget.
The new, unanimously approved rates are retroactive to Jan. 1.
Community Power sources electricity for its customers, while SDG&E transmits and delivers that power to customers’ homes and businesses. For a full breakdown of how electric bills in Community Power’s service areas work, visit SDCommunityPower.org/Understanding-Your-Bill/.
Community Power is a community choice energy program that gives customers an option to run their businesses and homes on significantly higher levels of renewable power at competitive rates. Since 2021, Community Power has grown to serve nearly a million municipal, business and residential power customers in the cities of San Diego, Chula Vista, Encinitas, La Mesa, National City and Imperial Beach as well as the unincorporated communities in the County of San Diego.
Community Power is a not-for-profit, public agency that provides affordable clean energy and invests in the community to create an equitable and sustainable future for the San Diego region. Learn more at SDCommunityPower.org.
