Liberty Power Begins Offering Residential Service in Illinois

Liberty Power has begun offering residential electricity supply at Commonwealth Edison.

Although Liberty's entrance to the ComEd residential market is not unexpected, what is somewhat surprising is the price point for its offers.

As of December 27, Liberty had the two lowest fixed rate offers listed on the PlugIn Illinois site, and the second and third lowest offers when including all product types (only Viridian's variable rate of 5.99¢/kWh is lower).

Specifically, as of Dec. 27, Liberty was offering a 12 month fixed rate priced at 6.1350¢/kWh, and a 24 month fixed rate priced at 6.2170¢/kWh. The products, branded as the Home Independence Plan, include an early termination fee equal to $10 per month remaining on the contract.

As of Dec. 27, Liberty's 12-month product was over 2.5 mills cheaper than the next lowest fixed offer posted on PlugIn Illinois, which was a rate of 6.4¢/kWh from Champion Energy.

Liberty's offers were refreshed Dec. 28 to a 12-month offer listed at 6.16¢/kWh and a 24-month offer listed at 6.24¢/kWh, still materially below the next fixed offer on the site

Liberty has taken a measured approach to the residential market, and in its two other markets where it publicly posts residential pricing (New York and Texas), its fixed rates are in the middle to high end of the market. For example, at Oncor, Liberty has listed on Texas Power to Choose a non-renewable 24-month fixed rate of 11¢/kWh, while the lowest 24-month fixed rate is 8.8¢/kWh.

Liberty has also previously marketed residential electricity in Pennsylvania (particularly at PPL) and Maryland, but does not currently list any active residential offers in those states.