Ancillary Services
This describes the additional services required in the generation and delivery of natural gas and electricity. These include the organization, generation control, contractual agreements, system supports, and securities necessary in energy delivery.
Base Charge
This is a flat fee applied to each month’s energy bill. This is the same each month regardless of how much energy is used by a customer.
Base Load
This is the minimum amount of energy required on the energy grid.
BTU
Abbreviation for British Thermal Unit and a unit of measure for the amount of energy necessary to raise the temperature of one pound of water by one degree of Fahrenheit.
Ccf
Abbreviation for hundred cubic feet and the unit of measure of natural gas.
CRES and CRNGS
Acronyms for Competitive Retail Electricity Supplier and Competitive Retail Natural Gas Supplier. Retail energy suppliers buy electricity and natural gas on the wholesale market and deliver the energy to your local utility company.
Capacity
A quantity of electric power, either delivered or required from a generation source.
Capacity Charge
This is one component of a two-part pricing method (Energy Charge is the other component) used in capacity transactions assessed on the amount of electricity purchased over a period of time.
Default Service Provider
This is the energy-service provider to which a customer will be automatically switched if a retail-energy service provider is not chosen for delivery of natural gas or electricity.
Demand
This is the amount of natural gas or electricity consumed over a period of time. On a customer’s monthly energy bill, this amount of time is monthly.
Deregulation
The removal of governing controls over local utility systems allowed consumers to choose between retail energy companies for natural gas and electricity.
Distribution System
The infrastructure that allows for the delivery of natural gas and electricity to the homes and businesses of retail-energy customers.
Distribution Charge
This is a charge appearing on your monthly energy invoice from the local utility and covers maintenance of the energy-distribution lines and facilities. The charge is regulated by the Public Utility Commission and is based on the amount of energy consumed by the customer.
Energy Choice
The deregulation of energy gave customers the freedom to choose their retail energy provider of natural gas and electricity. Through Energy Choice, consumers may select between a variety of providers as well as different fuel type, prices, configurations, and terms.
Electric Distribution Company (EDC)
This is the company that owns and operates the equipment and lines necessary for delivering high-voltage electricity to the retail consumers.
Energy Charge
Fee for the total amount of electricity consumed by a customer, measured in kilowatt-hours.
Fixed rate
A price per kWh or Ccf that does not change for a specific period of time, called a term. Terms can last anywhere from one to 36 months and can provide stability and peace-of-mind over possible energy-price increases.
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)
The government agency that regulates the price, terms, and conditions of energy sold through interstate commerce.
Fuel Charge
Amount charged per kWh or Ccf that covers the costs of fuels used to generate power or distribute natural gas.
Generation
The process of producing electricity from the output of other forms of energy including natural gas, coal, nuclear, wind, solar, hydro, and biomass – usually measured in kilowatt-hours.
kWh
Abbreviation for kilowatt-hour and the unit of measurement for electricity usage over time.
Load
The amount of electric power required to meet customer needs over a specific period of time.
Local Distribution Company (LDC)
The utility company that manages and operates the distribution of natural gas in a particular area.
Public Utilities Commission
The state regulatory agency governing retail utility rates and practices of distribution and generation facilities.
REC
Renewable Energy Certificate, a tradeable commodity of renewable energy that guarantees an equal amount of energy generated from renewable sources is returned to the energy grid in place of energy made from conventional sources.
Terms of Service
The content explaining an agreement between a customer and a CRES or CRNGS.
Transmission
The movement of high-voltage electricity across the infrastructure of transmission lines between power plants and the local distribution system.
Transmission Charge
Included in the basic service charges on a customer’s monthly energy invoice for the movement of electricity from the generation facility across the distribution system.
Usage
The total amount of natural gas or electricity consumed by customers during the monthly billing period – measured in kilowatt-hours (kWh) for electricity and hundred cubic feet (Ccf) for natural gas.
Variable rate
This is a price that changes over time. Specifically, electricity and natural gas offered at the fluctuating-commodities market price, which can change up or down from month-to month. Variable rates are based on market factors such as supply, demand, and changes in the weather.