ICC ORMD Report: ComEd Shopping Customers Paid 3¢/kWh More Than Default Service In Past Year

ComEd Residential Market Becomes Moderately Concentrated As Largest Suppliers Gain Market Share

July 23, 2024

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Copyright 2024 EnergyChoiceMatters.com
Reporting by Paul Ring • ring@energychoicematters.com

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Residential customers on competitive retail supply at Commonwealth Edison in Illinois paid, on average, about 3¢ per kWh more for electricity supply in the past 12-month period (June 2023 through May 2024 period) versus the ComEd price to compare, per an annual report from Office of Retail Market Development of the Illinois Commerce Commission

Residential shopping customers at ComEd paid, on average, $13.9 million more per month versus the ComEd PTC during the June 2023 through May 2024 period, and $14.6 million more per month versus the ComEd PTC plus the bypassable Purchased Electricity Adjustment (PEA)

In no month during the last 12 months was the aggregate average cost of residential shopping customers at ComEd lower than the cost under the PTC

For the year June 2023 through May 2024, residential shopping customers at ComEd paid in aggregate $167 million more than the PTC, and $175 million more than the PTC plus PEA

At ComEd, residential shopping customers on average paid 2.89¢/kWh more versus the ComEd PTC, and about 3.00¢/kWh more when including the PEA, during the June 2023 through May 2024 period

The ORMD report states that, for the past 13 years, residential customers on competitive supply at ComEd paid $862 million more than the PTC plus PEA

At Ameren, residential electric shopping customers paid about $9.3 million more per month during the last twelve months versus the Ameren PTC, and about $10.2 million more per month when including the PEA

At Ameren, residential electric shopping customers paid approximately 2.13¢/kWh more when compared to the Ameren PTC, and about 2.35¢/kWh more when including the PEA, during the June 2023 through May 2024 period

As is customary, the ORMD report listed the following notes about the price comparisons:

• These are total, or aggregate, savings. The savings for almost all individual customers differ from these averages

• These calculations are ex-post calculations and do not take into account how the default rates would have been different had more or fewer customers stayed on the utility’s default supply service

• Most of the ARES that serve residential customers have at least one offer that features a renewable energy or "green" component. The average rate information collected from the ARES includes the (usually higher) prices associated with those offers

• Not captured in these numbers are rewards and incentives that are not part of the ARES electric supply rates. For example, several ARES offer one-time gift cards as an incentive to sign up for a particular offer; other offers contain rewards such as airline miles and other non-rate benefits. However, those non-rate benefits are difficult to quantify and include in such calculations. Additionally, Staff would have to make several more assumptions and receive far more additional detailed data from the ARES community to quantify the non-rate benefits offered by ARES.

ORMD reported that, for the first time in eight years, the ComEd residential market experienced a significant decrease in competition and became moderately concentrated based on Herfindahl-Hirschmann Index (HHI) values, with the ComEd residential market's HHI value increasing from about 1,000 in 2023 (competitive) to about 1,800 in 2024 (moderately concentrated)

From May 2021 to May 2023, no residential supplier at ComEd had a market share (of switched customers) over 15%. As of May 2024, two retail suppliers now have a ComEd residential market share exceeding 15%

Moreover, the market share of the largest 3 residential suppliers at ComEd had ranged from 31%-36% from May 2021 to May 2023

As of May 2024, the market share of the largest 3 residential suppliers at ComEd is now 59%

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