How much will Portsmouth Community Power save residents on electric bills? Find out
PORTSMOUTH — The city’s Energy Advisory Committee is hosting a public meeting Thursday night to share information about the Portsmouth Community Power initiative, which starts in June.
The meeting will run from 6 to 8 p.m. in council chambers at City Hall.
The public is encouraged to attend and can ask any questions about Portsmouth Community Power and get answers about the program, according to City Councilor John Tabor, who helped promote the initiative and also serves on the Energy Advisory Committee.
“It’s just local folks talking to local folks about Portsmouth Community Power,” Tabor said this week.
More local news: Greenland wants Route 33 traffic fixed before Pease adds more development
Digging into the details of community power
Committee members believe Portsmouth electricity customers — including residents and businesses — who use Portsmouth Community Power, will be able to save about $34 a month if they choose the cheapest fossil fuel source for their electricity.
Tabor noted even customers who choose renewable or green energy sources for their electricity source should be able to save about $9 a month when compared to what they’re now paying for electricity, which will continue to be delivered by Eversource.
More local news: St. Thomas Aquinas teachers let go. School denies claims LGBTQ+ affiliation is reason.
“You can go 100 percent renewable and still save money,” Tabor said. “As many as 60 percent of our community residents are willing to pay the same or a little more to get their electricity from renewable sources.”
“This enables people to make a big difference in our carbon footprint,” he added.
Committee members are estimating that in June and July if all Portsmouth Community Power customers choose the cheapest fossil fuel rate, they can save a total of about $810,000 when compared to Eversource’s rates.
Portsmouth is working with the Community Power Coalition of New Hampshire, which will also include Dover, Durham, Exeter and Rye on the Seacoast, and numerous communities around the state.
That means that the first wave of communities working together statewide will have about 72,000 customers, but by next summer that number will jump to 120,000, Tabor said.
“We will have huge buying power,” he said.
That will make the Community Power Coalition of New Hampshire the second largest power company in the state, he said.
That size will allow Portsmouth Community Power and other local power groups to pool their buying power and get the lowest electricity rates, according to the committee.
More: New Castle voters approve buying Coast Guard property in packed Town Meeting
Tabor called the success of the initiative “a great example of what can be accomplished when volunteers and local governments work together all around the state.”
The main goal of the initiative is to save people money as electric prices spike, Tabor said. But “we’re also empowering our local residents and businesses, not just in Portsmouth but around the state, empowering communities to chart a smarter energy course.”
Eversource will continue to deliver electricity, handle restoration during power outages and send monthly bills to customers.
If Eversource is currently the electricity "Supplier" listed on their monthly bill, most customers will not need to take any action to participate.
Unless Portsmouth customers opt-out or choose a different option, they will be automatically enrolled into the Granite Basic power option and start saving money beginning on the day of the month in June that their meter is read, according to information put together by the committee.
People who are now receiving benefits through the Electric Assistance Program will continue to receive them after the switch to Portsmouth Community Power is completed, according to the committee.
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Portsmouth Community Power rolls out program to lower electric bills
