According to current data, customers’ enrollment in a gas choice program is at an all-time high with approximately 445,000 new participants selecting from one of these available options over the previous year’s statistics, equaling an increase of 9 percent. Offerings such as these continue to expand nationwide but the most recent data available estimates that about thirty-five million residential energy consumers have access to this option and 15 percent or 5.1 million are now purchasing the commodity from natural gas marketers.

Current records show that the United States has more than 65 million residential customers who consume approximately 5,000 billion cubic feet of natural gas annually. The average price that customers pay for the product purchased from a local distribution company is $13.89 per thousand cubic feet as of most recent reports.

The State of Georgia continues to have the highest participation of customers in a gas choice program. All customers within the Atlanta Gas Light Company’s service territory which represents more than 80 percent of the state’s residential customers make the purchase directly from marketers.

AGL still delivers the product but no longer provides any sales or service. Ohio, however, is experiencing the most rapid growth in its gas choice program with nearly 60 percent of all eligible households participating. Together Georgia and Ohio account for more than 60 percent of participants in the country.

About half of the states and the District of Columbia have adopted legislation or have implemented legislation that lets residential customer and other small-volume consumer purchase this commodity from a marketer rather than a traditional utility company.

The number of states offering this type of selection process continues to grow and the availability and provisions of the different state policies vary widely.

Some states offering this type of program allow all residential customers to choose their supplier, but a lack of marketer participation has prevented the development of competitive retail markets in some instances. Other states have partial unbundling in place while some have discontinued their pilot or partial unbundling.

Gas choice programs have just recently become available to residential customers in participating states. Large commercial and industrial consumers have had the option of purchasing the product separately from service for many years.

Enrollment in a residential gas choice program has increased steadily since these options became available. Ohio, New York and Michigan have experienced the largest increases in participation.

Along with Georgia, these states have the greatest number of households enrolled in a program and have access to many marketers and payment options.

The number of marketers providing services to residential customers has increased or remained the same in most states that offer a customer preference option. New York has the largest number of active marketers that deal in this resource, accounting for more than half of the national total.

Although the number of states that adopt legislation to deregulate the energy markets has remained fairly flat over the past several years, the number of customers choosing a customer choice program where it is available continues to increase steadily.

MXenergy is a leader in gas choice program as well as a retail power company which offers commercial and retail electricity.

Please visit us at http://www.mxenergy.com/ for all your energy needs.

Author Bio: MXenergy is a leader in gas choice program as well as a retail power company which offers commercial and retail electricity.

Category: Home Management
Keywords: gas choice program, electricity and gas, natural gas rates, energy companies, saving energy