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Retail Suppliers Seek Customer Referral Program in Ohio, "Enrollment By Wallet"

September 29, 2014

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Copyright 2010-14 EnergyChoiceMatters.com
Reporting by Karen Abbott • kabbott@energychoicematters.com

The Retail Energy Supply Association has proposed several retail market enhancements in Duke Energy Ohio's electric security plan.

Among these is what RESA calls a "Market Energy Program" (MEP), which is essentially a customer referral program, designed to, "introduce new and eligible, existing customers to a specific competitive generation product."

The new and eligible customers will be those residential and small commercial customers who are not currently receiving service from a CRES provider in Duke's service territory and who call Duke's call center for any reason other than termination or emergencies, RESA proposed.

Such customers will be offered the opportunity to select service from an assigned competitive supplier, with the offer consisting of a three percent discount to the applicable Price-to-Compare ('PTC') at the time of enrollment for a 6-month period, RESA said.

Suppliers would be charged a per-customer fee for enrollments under the program.

"The Commission will establish a per-enrolled customer charge at a level that will recoup the MEP estimated start-up costs amortized over a 3-year period, as well as ongoing program maintenance costs. If the per-enrolled customer charge exceeds $25.00, the Commission can extend the amortization period. Participating CRES providers will incur the approved charge for every customer that enrolls through the MEP and will be invoiced on a monthly basis," RESA said.

"Duke will be required to create a process or system that can sequentially assign a participating MEP supplier in a non-biased manner," RESA proposed.

"At any time during the six-month term the customer can elect to go with another CRES provider, choose a different product with the same supplier or take the standard service offer without a termination fee. · If at just prior [to] the expiration of the six-month term the customer has not chosen a product, the MEP provider would be required to send renewal notices in a manner consistent with applicable Commission rules. Customers can leave the program to take another competitive· product or return to default service without a termination fee during the program, or while on a renewal product with a MEP provider, stemming from MEP service," RESA said.

RESA also proposed an "Enroll From Your Wallet" program to facilitate customer shopping at locations where the customer does not have their account number (malls, events, etc.)

The program, under a pilot proposed by RESA, is essentially a remote account number look-up program.

"The concept is that the retail customer will give the CRES provider (a) authorization to obtain the utility account number from Duke, and (b) a personal code such as the customer's driver license number or personal fact - of the customer's choosing. The CRES provider will then go on the existing Duke web portal, check the entry menu stating the CRES provider has authority including the verification code to receive the utility account number. Duke's portal will then permit the CRES to obtain the utility account number," RESA said.

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