We have seen widespread cold weather throughout the country, and temperatures are expected to continue dropping over the next few days. Because of this weather event, we are sending out this price advisory message. Our members can expect these messages throughout the winter season as a reminder about the benefits of energy conservation. Some factors that may impact YVEA’s energy costs are out of our and our member’s control, including storm intensity, global events, and price volatility in the commodity market, which is why we want to emphasize the importance of energy conservation to help control your costs. Peak demand hours are typically between 5 PM and 9 PM, which is when the cost of energy is higher. Our wholesale power provider, Xcel, passes any increased energy pricing on to us. If you are able to conserve energy, especially during those peak demand hours, it could lessen the severity of a power cost adjustment assessed to YVEA. We want members to be prepared for this potential additional cost. Members should anticipate seeing higher bills from all of their utility providers this winter, and here are a few ways you can be prepared:
- Energy Hero Tips and Tricks. Easy ways to conserve energy in your daily life could impact your utility bills. (Link to Energy Hero)
- Budget Billing. Our Budget Billing program helps to give you a more predictable electric bill each month.
- Financial Assistance. If you are having trouble paying your bill, YVEA can assist members with ways to get bill assistance.
- Heat Tape and Space Heaters. Only use these items when you need to, as they can cause utility bills to skyrocket.
- Electric Baseboard Heaters. When you leave home and if you’re not worried about pipes freezing, turn your baseboard heat off or down to save money.
- Setup Daily kWh Usage Alerts. You can set up usage alerts through your SmartHub app. These alerts will help remind you to conserve energy if your usage increases.
YVEA is committed to delivering safe, reliable, and affordable electricity to our valued customers. Consider taking these steps now to help control your energy costs for the winter storm and entire winter.