CHICAGO, Aug. 23, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/
-- "Many Illinoisans probably don't think it's possible to
save money on their electric bills during hot summer days, but
thousands did recently, thanks to Ameren Illinois' Peak Time
Rewards program. CUB is pleased to hear that in the first Peak Time
Rewards event, more than 7,000 customers—about 70 percent of those
enrolled in the program—saved an average of $6.10, for total savings of $45,456. This is a promising start to a program
that has a lot of potential to save consumers energy and money. In
fact, if you expand those results to all Ameren Illinois
residential customers, total potential savings in the program could
reach about $1.8 million annually.
CUB believes that the cheapest electricity is the electricity you
don't use, and Ameren Illinois' Peak Time Rewards program proves
it. We encourage Ameren Illinois customers with advanced electric
meters to enroll in this program for next year, so they can receive
credits too."
Background
- Ameren Illinois plans to install 780,000 new advanced electric
meters by the end of 2019.
- Peak Time Rewards is a voluntary, no-cost program offered to
Ameren Illinois customers with the advanced electric meters. It
provides eligible customers with a bill credit if they reduce
energy usage at designated hours on "peak" days, when electricity
demand is high. The program encourages participants to take simple,
effective actions around the house, such as bumping up the
thermostat a few degrees or delaying household activities like
laundry and running the dishwasher until after the Peak Time
Rewards hours.
- The first Peak Time Rewards hours were on Aug. 11, when the heat index shot up to 110
degrees. During designated hours that day, more than 7,000 Ameren
Illinois customers, or about 70 percent of those in the program,
earned bill credits of $1.51 for each
kilowatt-hour (kWh) they saved below a personal baseline. The
average credit was $6.10.
Collectively, participants earned $45,456 in credits for saving 30,100 kWh. Ameren
said that's about how much electricity three typical Illinois households use in a year.
- Enrollment for this summer's Peak Time Rewards program is
closed. For more information on Ameren Illinois' program, or to
enroll for next summer, please visit PeakTimeRewards.com or call
1-844-787-7874.
CUB is Illinois' leading
nonprofit utility watchdog. Created by the Illinois Legislature,
CUB opened its doors in 1984 to represent the interests of
residential and small-business utility customers. Since then, it
has saved consumers more than $20
billion by helping to block rate hikes and secure refunds.
For more information, call CUB's Consumer Hotline, 1-800-669-5556,
or visit its award-winning website,
www.CitizensUtilityBoard.org.
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SOURCE Citizens Utility Board