Cambridge Community Electricity Program to Bolster Local Energy Use

Starting with their August utility bills, Cambridge residents and businesses who are currently enrolled in Eversource Basic Service will begin to receive cleaner electricity through the launch of the Cambridge Community Electricity program. The program is an electricity aggregation, in which Cambridge uses the bulk buying power of the entire community to negotiate a better price for the Supplier Services portion of electricity bills.

Following a competitive bidding process, the City signed an 18-month contract with Agera Energy to procure the City’s electricity supply. In addition to providing 25% more solar energy than the state minimum, the program will provide electricity cost savings at the time of its launch. The program price is fixed from July 2017 through January 2019, while Eversource Basic Service prices will fluctuate during that time (the current Basic Service rate is 10.759 cents/kWh). The program’s goal is to provide savings when compared with the average cost of the changing Eversource Basic Service prices.

Cambridge residents and businesses who currently receive Eversource Basic Service will be automatically enrolled in the Cambridge Community Electricity program’s Standard Green option, available for 10.486 cents/kWh. This option includes 25% more solar energy than required by the state, derived from renewable energy projects in or near Cambridge.

Residents and businesses also have the option of enrolling in 100% Green, which provides 100% renewable electricity generated by projects throughout New England. This option is available by request for 12.180 cents/kWh. Program participants will continue to receive and pay one bill from Eversource, and Eversource will continue to be responsible for delivering electricity to Cambridge and for addressing power outages. Those who are eligible for discounts from Eversource, such as a low-income discount, will continue to receive the same benefits. Those with solar panels on their property will continue to receive net metering credits, which will continue to be calculated based on the Eversource Basic Service rate, not on the program rate. 

Residents and businesses eligible for automatic enrollment will receive a letter in the mail with detailed program information in June. Electricity customers who have already established a contract with their own electricity supplier will not be automatically enrolled and will not receive a letter, but they may join the program by calling Agera Energy directly at 1-855-973-2788 and asking to enroll. 

Additionally, an “opt-out” option is available at any time with no penalty or fee, allowing residents or businesses to return to Eversource’s Basic Service or secure their own electricity contracts. To opt-out prior to the program’s July launch, requests must be submitted by July 5, 2017 to Agera Energy at 1-888-589-7790 or online at www.masspowerchoice.com/cambridge, or by signing and returning the reply card received in the mail.

Watch a discussion of the Cambridge Community Electricity Program on CCTV's "Not for Nothin'" series.

The public is invited to attend one of the following information sessions:

Monday, June 5
North Cambridge Senior Center
2050 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge, MA 02140
12:15pm

Monday, June 12
Lesley University
1815 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge, MA 02140
Room 3-076
6pm

Tuesday, June 13
Citywide Senior Center
806 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge, MA 02139
12:30pm

Monday, June 26
City Hall Annex
344 Broadway, Cambridge, MA 02139
6pm

Additional information is available on the program website at www.masspowerchoice.com/cambridge, Questions or comments can be directly to Cambridge Community Electricity program consultants at 1-844-379-9934 or cambridge@masspowerchoice.com.