SMECO Introduces 100% Renewable Energy Rate Option Customers May Choose Rider G

HUGHESVILLE, Md. – Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative (SMECO) has received approval from the Maryland Public Service Commission to make a 100 percent renewable energy option available for residential and commercial accounts.

SMECO will purchase renewable energy credits (REC) to cover the total amount of energy used by the members who sign up for the green energy option, called “Rider G.” Since SMECO is already obtaining 32 percent of its energy from renewables, members who sign up for Rider G will be charged an additional rate to pay for renewable energy for the remaining 68 percent of the energy they use each month.

The Rider G rate will be updated on or about January 1 of each year for changes in REC prices and purchase percentages. The rate may also be adjusted at other times whenever significant market pricing changes occur.

SMECO members who are interested in the Rider G rate can find more information or sign up online at smeco.coop/go-green. Members who purchase energy through an alternate supplier are not eligible for SMECO’s Rider G green energy option, but there are alternate suppliers that may also provide a 100 percent renewable option or contracts with various levels of renewable energy. Alternate suppliers can be found under the link “Shop for Electricity” on the Maryland PSC’s website—www.psc.state.md.us.

SMECO – The Cooperative Difference –

SMECO was incorporated in 1937 and is one of the 15 largest electric cooperatives in the United States with more than 169,000 member accounts in Charles County, St. Mary’s County, southern Prince George’s County, and most of Calvert County.

Electric cooperatives are shaped by the communities they serve, because co-ops are owned by their customers.  Co-op members elect the men and women who serve on the Board of Directors. Members share the responsibility of ownership by financing the cooperative’s operations, but they also share its rewards.

At the end of each year, SMECO’s margins (profits) are allocated to members’ capital credit accounts. SMECO uses its profits to invest in new construction, system improvements, and facility upgrades. The Board of Directors regularly evaluates the financial condition of the co-op and determines when members will receive a refund. Since 1937, SMECO has refunded more than $110 million.

As a cooperative, SMECO will always put its members first and be responsive, reliable, and resourceful—the power you can count on.

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The SMECO 24/7 mobile app is available at www.smeco.coop/247.