With 19 states or provinces in North America allowing commercial and industrial customers to choose between various electricity providers, a new study shows that 80% of eligible units of energy sold to large business consumers in 12 U.S. states come from a non-incumbent power provider – or a non-utility company offering energy delivered across a network of regulated utility wires.
Texas is the North American leader in non-residential cost-saving opportunities for electricity, while Alberta, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania also have high levels of commercial and industrial customers switching to new providers.
The Annual Baseline Assessment of Choice in Canada and the United States (ABACCUS) shows that under a deregulated system with more than one provider, commercial and industrial customers negotiate customized energy solutions and specific terms, acquiring electricity just like any other good or service. Consumers are also taking into account a variety of issues to choose the best power provider, including production lines and energy-consuming device usage, operating schedule and ability to interrupt certain devices with little notice, corporate sustainability goals, level of in-house energy management knowledge, and energy price risk tolerance.
