Office of the Ohio Consumers' Counsel

Support renewable energy and go green

The Office of the Ohio Consumers’ Counsel (OCC) is urging customers of American Electric Power – Ohio, Duke Energy Ohio and FirstEnergy to sign up for the companies’ new green pricing options. The programs offer customers a way to support the development of renewable energy like wind, solar and biomass power.

The OCC worked together with each utility to develop the programs, which offer customers the ability to purchase renewable energy certificates (RECs). These RECs represent the positive environmental and social attributes associated with renewable energy resources.

When consumers purchase RECs they are supporting the use of renewable energy that replaces the same amount of energy used that would otherwise be produced from fossil fuels like coal and natural gas. These programs also will lead to less carbon dioxide emissions being released into the atmosphere.

AEP-Ohio customers can sign up for the Green Pricing Option for as little as $1.40 per month for a minimum of 200 kilowatt hours of RECs. The average residential customer uses approximately 850 kilowatt hours of electricity per month. Customers may sign up for the program by calling AEP-Ohio at 1-800-277-2177 or by visiting www.aepohio.com.

Duke Energy customers can sign up for the GoGreen program for as little as $5 per month for a minimum of 200 kilowatt hours of RECs. Customers may enroll in the program by calling Duke Energy at 1-800-423-5401 or by visiting www.duke-energy.com.

FirstEnergy customers can sign up for the Green Resource Program for as little as $1 per month for a minimum of 200 kilowatt hours of RECs. Customers may enroll by calling their local electric utility or by visiting www.firstenergycorp.com/greenresourceprogram.