Energy Bill Savings On The Way For Summit Residents: How To Participate

SUMMIT, NJ — Monthly energy costs are on their way down, city leaders said, after a contract was awarded for Summit's energy aggregation program.

On Tuesday, the Summit Common Council introduced a new deal with Direct Energy as a provider for energy in the city. The move comes as a result of a state government energy aggregation program put into place in 2003 that allows municipalities to bid for energy rather than customers going up against utility providers.

Residents may still choose to utilize their own energy suppliers. Enrollment is not mandatory, but those looking to participate will have to apply.

"Sometimes the markets work, sometimes they don't," said Council President Mike McTernan, "and back in the teens when we looked at this before, the arbitrage went away. Now, it's back."

Concord Energy Services, an energy asset management and advisement firm, handled the bidding for the city. According to Lisa Hibbs, Director of Sales and Project Management at Concord Engineering, Summit secured the lowest price of all their co-ops at the open auction held on Oct. 3.

Residents will begin to see their bills drop in March 2026, added Hibbs. The new contract will save customers between five and 10 percent on their bills as compared to the average usual rates.

This equates to around $8 per month savings per month per resident.

"On an average utility bill, maybe this is going to save you $90 bucks a year," McTernan added. "I'm happy with $90 bucks...and again this is something residents don't really need to do anything on."

Information packets will be mailed out to eligible residents after Dec. 1.

In order to be eligible, a customer must:

• Not be in an individual contract with a third-party supplier
• Not have net meters for solar
• Not have permanently opted out in a previous round
• Not have a time-of-day meter (on-peak and off-peak)

There will be town hall outreach information sessions for residents announced at a later date on the city's website.

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