A report provide by K.C. Poulos, Oak Park’s sustainability manager, at Monday’s board meeting showed the village has saved $1.6 million from the electricity aggregation program.
According to the report, at the time the contract began with Integrys Energy, certain residents with all-electric heating systems were excluded because they were receiving a better rate through ComEd. That rate, however, has ended and as a result all electric-heat customers are eligible to enroll in the village’s program with Integrys.
Because Oak Park was an early leader of the initiative, it was able to offer savings to residents enrolled in the program. The measure was approved in October 2011 and the new rates for customers were implemented at the beginning of the year.
According to the amended ordinance passed Monday, the village and Integrys will conduct an outreach and education campaign to the roughly 1,000 residential and business customers to inform them about the change in the program. Customers are said to save 30 percent under the aggregation rate.
It was also recommended by staff that Oak Park look into more collaborative opportunities with other municipalities for future aggregation contracts now that other communities are following the trend.