Shedding some light…13 communities

Shedding some light…13 communities seek OK for 'municipal aggregation'

October 28, 2013

A total of 13 individual cities and towns are seeking to move forward with a process that would lower electricity rates for local residents and businesses.

The process, known as “municipal aggregation,” allows ratepayers in a city, town or regional entity to pool their purchasing power.

Since 2004, when the Cape Light Compact became the first entity in Massachusetts to take advantage of the process, only five cities and towns – Marlborough, Lanesborough, Ashland, Lunenburg and Lancaster – have adopted municipal aggregation, according to the Department of Energy Resources.

But interest has recently increased, in part because companies that market aggregation have been courting municipalities more aggressively, according to Lancaster Town Administrator Orlando Pacheco.

“Brokers have been advertising the product more, so they’ve done a better job of selling cities and towns on what aggregation can do,” Pacheco said.

Because the rates are locked in for a set period, aggregation contracts give customers some protection from spikes in energy costs, he added.

Of the cities and towns seeking approval for municipal aggregation, Lowell is the closest to receiving a decision, according to Mary-Leah Assad, press secretary in the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs.

Other communities awaiting word are Ashby, Clarksburg, Dalton, Florida, Lenox, Natick, New Marlborough, North Adams, Sheffield, Tyringham, West Stockbridge and Williamstown.

After receiving Town Meeting approval to pursue an aggregation plan last fall, Natick chose Peregrine Energy Group to develop the plan and Bay State Consultants to implement it, according to Bob Bois, the town’s environmental compliance officer.

Town Administrator Martha White noted that Natick shaped its plan not only to save residents and businesses money but also to promote the town’s green energy goals.

“We will not award a contract if it ends up costing more money, but we also won’t do it if it doesn’t result in a greener contract,” White said.

Written by MMA Associate Editor Mitch Evich