New York Energy Deregulation: How Can It Help Me Lower Costs? 

Now, New York businesses and private residence can take advantage of energy savings by purchasing their natural gas and electricity from an energy service company, also called an ESCO.

When you receive energy, you pay for two things, supply and delivery. Purchasing your energy supply from an ESCO can save money for you. While some ESCOs give you long-term fixed prices, others very the rates based on market conditions. You can also lacking your rates to save money versus what you may pay, for example, during peak energy times. Some ESCO providers provide month-to-month service, but will do so at variable rates. 

With ESCOs, you may be required to sign a contract to purchase electricity and/or natural gas, and you may need to do so for a given period of time. Regardless, though, because you have choice, you can choose what's best for you based on both price and terms. 

What does that mean for you as a business? 

Because ESCOs can save you money, you can also save money when it comes to running your business. Because energy costs probably comprise a significant portion of your expenditures, signing up for your energy needs through an ESCO can really help your bottom line. 

In order for a particular entity to qualify as an ESCO, it must do the following: 

• It must meet the Public Service Commission's eligibility criteria, including the filing of disclosure statements and standard customer contracts, for review.
• It must be creditworthy, and to that end, must provide financial information to the local utility company demonstrating that it is creditworthy.
• It must handle complaints and other procedures in a manner consistent with the New York State Home Energy Fair Practices Act.
• It must demonstrate that it's a certified business and is registered with the New York State Department Of State.

Because an ESCO must meet the above criteria, your rights as a consumer and business are being protected.

Before you choose an ESCO for your business, you should do a comparison among the different features for each company, including customer service, terms (including fees, renewals, deposits, and switching providers); you should also compare prices and services offered between the different ESCOs you review, and should choose the best one based upon the terms and prices provided.

In addition, make sure you investigate each company's background, to make sure that the company you decide to choose has been in business for long enough to have well-established customer service procedures, etc. Make sure you review any terms and conditions before you decide to sign on with a particular ESCO for service. 

You don't have to switch to an ESCO, but it may save you money. If you decide you want to, your utility is going to verify with you via a verification letter that you have decided to switch to an ESCO. If you have not intended to switch or if the ESCO detailed in the letter is different than the one you chose, make sure you contact your utility right away.

In addition, when you sign up with an ESCO, make sure you check your bills to ensure that information is correct; if you have any questions, make sure you contact the company or ESCO in question right away via the customer information number listed on the bill.

National Grid

National Grid is one of the largest investor owned energy companies in the world. They are an international gas and electric company, their core business is the delivery of natural gas and electricity. In the United States National Grid serves over 3.2 million consumers (electricity needs) mainly in Massachusetts, New York, New Hampshire and Rhode Island while managing the electricity network of Long Island.

In the state of New York, National Grid is the largest power producer owning about 6650 megawatts of electricity generation that supplies power to more than one million customers and supplies the city of New York roughly one quarter of the electricity it needs. National Grid is also the largest distributor of natural gas in the northeastern part of the United States, again serving more than 3.3 million consumers in New York, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Massachusetts.

In addition to the supplying energy to consumers, National Grid also has a number of businesses that work in the metering and interconnectors areas. National Grid also uses a smart grid. Basically this is an intelligent electricity distribution network that utilizes two way communications and advanced meters, sensors and controls and computers that reduce the amount of electricity/energy that customers use and improve the efficiency and reliability of the electric grid. The smart grid is also able to facilitate the connection of generation facilities as they are distributed to the system.

What this means to the consumer is more green resources, enhanced performance of the electric system and the ability for the consumer to make more informed decisions on how they use energy. According to National Grid they strive to providing outstanding customer service and delivering energy in a reliable and safe manner while keeping costs low.

The National Grid supplies electricity specifically to Massachusetts, Nantucket, New Hampshire, Upstate New York and Rhode Island. The natural gas supplies go directly to Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and the following counties in New York: Albany, Cayuga, Columbia, Fulton, Herkimer, Jefferson, Kings (Brooklyn), Madison, Montgomery, Nassau, Oneida, Onondaga, Oswego, Queens, Rennsselar,  Richmond, Saratoga, Schenectady, and Suffolk.