Energy Aggregation

The City has worked closely with Energy Alliances to establish a cost-stabilizing program for natural gas. This program is known as aggregation. Households in the City were previously enrolled in this program until May of 2022, unless they had previously chosen to opt out. The new contract period will begin October 2022 and run thru October 2024. Letters will be mailed in late August or mid-September 2022 to eligible households and households will have 21 days after receiving the letter to opt out of the program if they desire. There will be more details, options for opting out, and frequently asked questions included in the letter and published on the City of Harrison website in the near future.



AEP Energy Program Highlights


  • Price: $0.839 per ccf
  • Term: October 2022 to October 2024 (24 months)
  • Termination Fee: None
  • Supplier: AEP Energy
  • AEP Energy will mail details and opt-out materials to residents sometime between late August and mid-September. Regardless of when the letter is mailed, residents will still have 21 days to opt-out.
  • Opting out will be possible by either sending back the tear off on the letter or by calling AEP Energy at an “800" number. 
  • Energy Alliances maintains a webpage dedicated to our City's energy aggregation program. 



Frequently Asked Questions


"If I already opted out, do I need to opt out again?"
Because the City had a break in the aggregation program ALL eligible residents will be opted IN per Ohio law. Therefore, even residents who have previously opted out will need to do so again if they desire to not be part of this program.

Residents are encouraged to subscribe to text and/or email updates from the City to be notified when the opt-out period opens.


“Why did we lock in at $0.839 per ccf?” 
A fixed price natural aggregation program is all about protecting the risk for a winter spike. Market information tells us that there is a high risk for increasing prices this winter due to low natural gas storage, increasing consumption and increased exports. We understand prices could come in lower than $0.839 per ccf. However, we truly believe the feeling of residents being at risk of paying $1.00 per ccf would hurt significantly more than if the price fell to $0.678 per ccf.


“I saw a price for lower than $0.839 per ccf. What can I do?” 
Natural gas is a commodity just like gasoline where the prices change every day. During the term of this aggregation program, there will be offers in the market that are both higher and lower than the aggregation rate. It may be because the market prices moved or the offer is for a shorter/ longer term, etc. Residents are free to come and go out of the aggregation program any time they want without a termination fee if they find an offer that they feel is better for them than the aggregation program. The aggregation program offers the residents fixed price protection which Duke Energy’s variable Gas Cost Recovery rate cannot.

If a resident decides to shop on their own, it is also up to them to keep track of renewal rates. Many residents this year received natural gas renewal rates above $1.00 per ccf and electric rates above $0.10 per kWh.

 

“What happens if prices fall? Can the City lower the price?” 
We will continue to watch the market and if there is an opportunity to “Blend and Extend” the contract with lower the price we will do so.

updated August 12, 2022