Posted by Dennis Herrick on June 03, 2009 at 09:43:53:
MEA in NH? Why we're way too conventional up here for that. Here's how they do it in Massachusetts! Cities, towns and residents are on top and the electric utilities are on the bottom. Why won't NH try other positions? Their citizens just might find life a little more enjoyable, er, affordable.
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Town mulls plan to change energy supplier
By Dan Magazu, dmagazu@sentinelandenterprise.com
Posted: 06/03/2009 06:32:25 AM EDT
LUNENBURG -- The Board of Selectmen on Tuesday authorized Town Manager Kerry Speidel to investigate whether or not the town can save money by purchasing electricity through a third-party provider rather than Unitil.
Municipal Electric Aggregation is a process under the law where a community through action at Town Meeting can solicit bids from a third-party electricity providers to supply energy to the entire town, according to Speidel.
"The supply would come from somebody other than the distributor," Speidel said. "The intent being to save residents money."
Unitil currently provides and distributes electricity in Lunenburg. But the company is open to the town purchasing energy in bulk from a third party, Speidel said.
"They encourage this," Speidel said. "They believe it's a way to save money."
The town currently utilizes a similar process to purchase energy in bulk for all municipal buildings, Speidel said.
"In what we go through with municipal buildings, the supply rate is so volatile," Speidel said. "It's like playing the stock market with electricity."
Currently a few communities in the state purchase energy through Municipal Electric Aggregation, Speidel said.
"There aren't a lot of communities doing it, but there are a lot that are exploring this," Speidel said. "If there is some way to offer that savings to residents, it seems like a worthwhile endeavor."
Speidel said if she discovers the process would save the town money she could potentially have a warrant article drafted in time for the special Town Meeting in the fall.
The entire board supported investigating the process.
"It's important to talk to other communities," Selectman Paula Bertram said. "Then talk to potential suppliers and look at what those rates are going to be in comparison to Unitil."
In other business, Speidel informed the board that the budget for fiscal 2010 approved at Town Meeting last month and set to go into affect on July 1, may end up starting $166,000 out of balance.
The reason for the immediate deficit is that the budget included state local aid numbers based on the budget proposed in the House.
Those numbers have been slashed in the budget recently proposed by the state Senate, Speidel said.
"The Senate's version is probably closest to what we will see in terms of local aid numbers," Speidel said. "I need to be looking at ways to carve out about $170,000 from the fiscal 2010 budget that was approved at Town Meeting."