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Fire companies to save on electric costs
By Jonathan Starkey
Staff Reporter
State officials announced Friday night that Delaware Volunteer Fire Companies which are Delmarva Power customers can now be part of the state electricity aggregate to save money on electric costs. Fire Companies now join the state, the City of Wilmington, county governments and schools as the only approved members of the aggregate.
“I think it’s a great thing,” said Alan Robinson, president of the Delaware Volunteer Fireman’s Association, who with the organization worked with the state toward bringing fire companies on board. State officials announced the news at the Volunteer Fireman’s Convention last week. “I have fire departments across the state that are interested.”
The State Office of Management and Budget’s Facilities Management section runs the aggregate, which was formed last May in response to rising energy prices.
The state awarded the bid to Direct Energy, subsidiary of Centrica, a London-based Global Fortune 500 company, in June. Direct Energy offers electricity and natural gas services in eight states, including Delaware, Washington, D.C., and Canada.
Bob Furman, the director of Facilities Management, said that before adding the volunteer fire companies, the group expected to cumulatively save $14 million annually. Sussex County and the Indian River School District are already members of the aggregate.
“I think it’s important to the volunteer fire companies,” Furman said. The rates members of the aggregate receive vary, he added. “I am going to be meeting with the companies to get the information that we need to make them an aggregation partner.”
Selbyville Volunteer Fire Company President Howard Pepper, who attended last week’s convention, said he is interested in the opportunity but that joining the group will require a general-membership vote. Pepper said that, after talking with officials last week, he would expect the fire company to save $6,000 to $8,000 annually as a member of aggregate.
“We’re definitely interested. We’re very excited about it,” Pepper said, adding that the company’s electric bills rose 61 percent on May 1 when Delmarva Power’s rates increased because of rising fuel prices. Delaware energy rate caps were lifted on May 1.
“They’re supposed to be sending us information. It’s a good deal,” Pepper added. “It’s supposed to cut our electric bill in half.”
Millville Volunteer Fire Company President Rancel Evans said the company’s electric rates also doubled this spring. After paying about $900 a month for electricity last summer, Evans said the company paid about $1,800 per month this summer but did not budget for the increase.
Evans did not have enough information to comment on the possibility of joining the aggregate Tuesday but said the company’s board should be interested.
“We’ve got to do everything we can to save money,” Evans said of the company, which has had financial troubles lately because of decreased donations, area growth and rising energy costs. “We did not foresee (the rate increases) coming this much. We did not budget it for that kind of money. It’s put a strain on us,” he added.
On May 1, Delmarva Power residential and commercial rates increased by 47 percent to 117 percent. Indian River School District Finance Director Patrick Miller said the school district’s electric rates increased by 69 to 117 percent when Delmarva Power rates increased in May.
The district joined the state aggregate to “save local taxpayer funds,” Miller said, but he did not have figures on those savings. Local residential and commercial aggregate groups have also formed since to counter rising prices.
Through CQI Associates, a Maryland aggregation company, the Bethany-Fenwick Area Chamber of Commerce negotiated a rate of 9.897 cents for the 74 members of a co-op it formed for its members in May with a unanimous board vote.
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