Most business owners are struggling these days. If you are one of the lucky ones that are succeeding, you would still love to save on your gas bill. Well, NY State stepped in and busted the utilities' monopoly on energy. National Grid (formerly Keyspan) and Con Ed have been ordered to let other suppliers offer natural gas to consumers. The government did this simply because New York utility prices are too high!
National Grid and Con Ed are so large and have so many expenses that the price of gas has to be high just for them to break even. That has all changed.
Now...You can get your natural gas from anybody you want!
The companies that are allowed to sell natural gas are called Energy Service Companies (ESCO). There are quite a few ESCOs operating in New York. They have much lower expenses than the utilities and are therefore able to offer natural gas at a much lower price. You should also know that if you purchase your gas supply from an ESCO the sales tax on the delivery portion of your bill is either reduced or eliminated altogether. That's a second way to save money!
You can save between 7% to 12% on your gas bill.
The utilities also contribute to your savings. They will waive their billing fee (a third way to save money) and they will even perform billing and payment processing for the ESCOs.
Sound too good to be true? Don't take my word for it. Go to: www.dps.state.ny.us/yourenergy.htm and you will see with your own eyes exactly what I am talking about. Once business owners come to the realization that the savings are real they still think there is a catch. Let me head you off at the pass: The gas is the same. The pipes are the same. The service is the same. In most cases the bill is the same. Nothing really changes except the amount of your bill is significantly less. The bill stays the same except they simply add one section showing the details of your gas supply purchase from your ESCO.
What can go wrong?
You really have nothing to lose as long as you go with a reputable company. There are some companies that can lure you into a contract that appears good but has some clauses that may wind up costing you a bundle. There are some ESCOs that require that you sign long term contracts while some just have month to month agreements. You also have to keep an eye on the price that you pay. You may start out paying a good price but over time you may wind up overpaying. There are many ways that you can end up with a bad deal.
Not all ESCOs are alike. It is important to know that although there are a few ESCOs to stay away from, most ESCOs will help you save real money.
There is a local company called Metropolitan Energy Solutions. This company is one of the good ones! They guarantee that you save money when you switch with them and they put it in writing! What good is saying you are going to save money? This should put you at ease. They will send out a local rep who will show you how they can save you money and they will hand you their guarantee in writing. Now that the heating season is coming, this is something every business owner should be looking into. Call to get in touch with the local representative for this company. If you get his or her voice mail just leave a message and he will get right back to you. I implore you to call to get the free savings analysis.
Finally, someone figured out a way to give us real significant savings on your gas bill!
Two thumbs up! Yah!
Metropolitan Energy Solutions Corp. located at 700 Veterans Memorial Hwy, #210 in Hauppauge and is an affiliate of High Rise Energy Group which is a registered Energy Service Company (ESCO) with the NYS Public Service Commission.





Peter Pellegrini is an energy consultant at Metropolitan Energy Solutions, Ridgewood, N.Y. Tags: