CANADA
USAThe Players in the Illinois Electricity Market
Understanding how the deregulated Illinois electricity market operates can be a challenging undertaking. To give you a better understanding of the nature of the Illinois electricity market we will discuss the major players and their role in the Illinois electricity market.
- The Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC)
- Utility Companies - Commonwealth Edison (ComEd) and Ameren Illinois
- The Illinois Power Agency (IPA)
- Illinois Municipal Electric Agency (IMEA)
- Alternative Retail Electric Suppliers (ARES)
The Illinois Commerce Commission
The Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) is the state agency responsible for the regulation of public utilities including: electric services, natural gas, telecommunication services, water, sewage, and some transportation activities. Its primary mission regarding energy services is to ensure an appropriate balance between the interest of consumers and service providers, as well as establishing the rates and charges for services by public utilities (the ICC considers the term "public utility" to include private companies serving the public but not municipal utilities). The ICC does not endorse any specific ARES, which helps foster a competitive environment and protect your rights.
The Utility Company
The two major electric utility companies responsible for the delivery of electricity in Illinois are CommonWealth Edison (ComEd) and Ameren Illinois. Should a customer not choose a retail electric supplier, the customer will purchase their electricity directly from one of these utilities. Ameren and ComEd simply charge customers for the cost of buying electricity and do not make any profit. Because of this, the utilities do not treat you differently should you choose to switch to an ARES. Regardless of whether you choose for a utility to supply your electricity or an ARES, the utility is responsible for delivering power to you, fixing power outages, addressing service issues, and taking care of billing and payments.
The Illinois Power Agency
Established in 2007, the Illinois Power Agency (IPA) is an independent, not-for-profit government agency responsible for buying electricity on behalf ComEd and Ameren. The IPA's mission is to "ensure adequate, reliable, affordable, efficient, and environmental sustainable electric serve at the lowest total cost over time." The IPA uses estimates provided to them from the utilities about their customers' electricity needs and then develops and executes a procurement plan which must be approved by the ICC. Once a year, the agency uses the collective buying power of Illinois consumers as a bargaining tool to negotiate with producers to get the lowest possible price.
The Illinois Municipal Electric Agency (IMEA)
The Illinois Municipal Electric Agency (IMEA) is unit of the local government made up of 32 municipalities that have signed a contract with IMEA, obligating the agency to combine the needs of all these cities and using bargaining power to secure the electricity they require. Once the electricity has been secured at a low and stable price, the agency is under contract to supply the cities with all of their electric needs at wholesale prices until 2035. In order to fulfill the expectations of the cities, IMEA has a portfolio of power supply ownership and long-purchase agreements.
Alternative Retail Electric Suppliers
An Alternative Retail Electric Supplier (ARES) is any electricity company that has been certified by the Illinois Commerce Commission to sell electricity to residential and/or commercial customers. All of the ARESs compete against each other and the utility to sell energy customers by providing competitive prices and varied services. Unlike the IPA, which is responsible for buying electricity for ComEd and Ameren customers once a year, each ARES buys power through the year for its customers, which can result in the ability to offer lower prices.
