Newton Power Choice

The City of Newton is developing a plan for a new electricity program to be named Newton Power Choice.

The program provides an opportunity for Newton to take a bold step and significantly increase the amount of renewable energy in the community’s electricity supply.

The program is a form of group electricity purchasing known as an electricity aggregation. More than 125 communities in Massachusetts are already engaged in electricity aggregation. The program will impact the supply charges on your Eversource electricity bill. (Learn how aggregation works.)

With the program, the City will use the bulk buying power of the community to provide:

Greener electricity: The program will include more renewable energy than Eversource provides. (Massachusetts law requires that a minimum amount of renewable energy be included in all electricity sold in the state.)

Price stability: The program will provide a fixed price for electricity supply over a long period of time. This will make the program different from both Eversource’s Basic Service, where the price changes every six months or less, and from many commercial offers in the market place. (Eversource’s Basic Service is the utility’s electricity supply service for customers who have not signed their own contract with an electricity supplier.)

Consumer protections: The competitive procurement process will ensure a City-vetted alternative to commercial electricity supply offers that customers may be receiving in the mail or by phone. There will be no hidden costs or other hidden provisions.

New electricity choices

As a program participant, you will have new electricity choices. You will have greater control over the environmental characteristics and price of your electricity supply.

You will receive a standard amount of renewable electricity automatically, above the minimum amount required by state law. (The standard amount is still to be determined, depending in part on electricity prices at the time the City enters into a contract with an electricity supplier).

Or you can choose to:

• Opt up to 100% renewable electricity.
• Opt down to receive no additional renewable energy electricity above the state law requirement, but retain the program benefits of price stability and consumer protections.

All choices, including the standard offering, will provide renewable electricity from New England-based renewable energy projects.

Participating and opting out

All Eversource Basic Service customers (Eversource customers who have not signed a contract with an electricity supplier) will be automatically enrolled. This automatic enrollment model is the state law. If you have already signed a contract with an electricity supplier, you will not be automatically enrolled, but it will be easy to opt into the program if you wish.

Participation is not required. You may opt out of the program before being enrolled and any time after enrollment with no fee or penalty.