At GoodCharlie Energy, we understand how important it is to save money on your electricity bill. You have other things you want to spend your hard-earned cash on, such as your pets and their well-being. As a result, we get it that you want to find cheap energy so you’re not going broke on your utilities.
However, thanks to decades of experience in the Texas electricity market, we also understand the risks and worries involved with buying cheap energy. GoodCharlie is also privy to some of the tricks and practices that REPs use to make you think you’re getting cheap energy when you’re actually overpaying. If you want the best of both worlds, where you get cheap energy and a quality electricity plan, you’ve come to the right place.
Contrary to what you might think, there is in fact some energy that’s cheaper than others. However, as a Texan in pursuit of affordable electricity rates, the only cheap energy you need to worry about is the cost of your monthly power bill. Even in this regard, some electricity and energy is cheaper than others.
Once again contrary to what you might think, there’s no difference between expensive and cheap electricity. All electricity, regardless of where it came from or who created it, is the same and will provide power to your home. If that’s the case, though, why do some companies have higher electricity rates than others? If it all costs the same, then it would seem that everyone would pay the same amount.
The main reason that some people pay more for electricity than others is because of deregulation. Taking place in 2002, deregulation turned the government-regulated electricity market in Texas into a free-for-all. Prior to deregulation, the state and federal governments controlled electricity companies, prices, and plans. As a result, you had to purchase electricity from whichever power company happened to operate in your area.
After deregulation, however, electricity companies were allowed to set their own prices, structure their own plans, and operate free from government control. Essentially, this made electricity in Texas similar to phone, TV, and internet plans. Companies started getting tricky with their pricing plans and structures, resulting in what some people mistakenly believed to be cheap energy.
All electricity, regardless of the price, comes from the same three places - fossil fuels, renewable resources, and nuclear power plants.
Fossil fuels are the number one source of electricity in Texas. Coal, oil, and natural gas are the big three when it comes to fossil fuels used to produce electricity. However, the cost of electricity from fossil fuels costs the same amount as the cost of electricity from other resources.
While Texas is trying to eliminate its nuclear power plants, they still play a viable role in electricity production. While nuclear energy provides the potential of free energy, it still costs Texans the same to purchase electricity from nuclear power plants as from anywhere else.
Renewable resources are the third and final source of electricity in Texas. Renewable resources include solar power, wind energy, and hydroelectricity, with wind energy being far and away the most popular. Once again, although wind turbines and solar panels harness free electricity from the sun and wind, it costs you the same amount to purchase it.
The reason that you’re paying the same amount for electricity, regardless of where it comes from, is that you’re buying it from an REP. REPs, retail electric providers, are privately owned electricity companies that act as a middle-man for electricity. They purchase electricity at wholesale cost from various power-generating plants and sell it to you at retail price. However, because of deregulation, REPs can set their retail price at whatever rate they desire.
As a consumer, it’s tempting to look at nothing more than the electricity rate next to an electricity plan. However, if you truly want cheap energy, you have to consider more than the listed rate. After all, electricity companies have acquired many tricks of the trade to make their electricity look cheaper than it actually is.
In the terms and conditions, you’ll find out why a company can offer such cheap energy. The terms and conditions will reveal any hidden fees or charges that aren’t factored into the listed rate of the plan. These include early termination fees, underuse fees, overuse fees, late payment fees, restart fees, deposits, and more.
Even more important than the terms and conditions of a plan is the electricity facts and labels sheet. This sheet will show the ACTUAL rate that you’ll be paying for your “cheap” energy. For example, let’s say that you see a plan with a listed rate of 11 cents/kWh. However, this rate is based on using between 1,000 and 2,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity.
If you use less than 1,000 kWh, your rate skyrockets to 20 cents/kWh. If you use more than 2,000 kWh, your rate jumps to 15 cents/kWh. Depending on your household size and usage, you could pay one of these expensive rates rather than the listed one. Contact us to learn more about tiered rates and how to choose the right plan based on your usage.
Finally, you should look into the reputation of the company offering the cheap energy. One of the reasons that some companies can offer cheap energy is because they have a limited staff. Typically, a limited staff means that they’ll have poor customer service and a slow response time. If you have a power outage, these are both things you want to stay away from.
Additionally, you want to stay away from cheap energy offered by a company with a reputation of dishonest dealings.
If you want cheap energy rates from a reliable company that cares about more than the bottom dollar, contact us at GoodCharlie Energy. We provide quality, honest service with competitive rates and reward packages. We prove that we care about more than money through the rewards we offer, all of which benefit the dogs and cats of Texas. If you’re tired of overpaying for electricity, make the switch to GoodCharlie today!