Center for Neighborhood Technology » Energy

Power Smart Pricing Gets Praise from Participants and the Press

annette — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 21:48:07 +0000

Power Smart Pricing is a different electricity pricing option offered by the Ameren Illinois Utilities and administered by CNT Energy. Under the standard residential rate, electricity costs the same amount no matter what time of day you use it. Power Smart Pricing lets you pay the hourly, wholesale market price of electricity which varies throughout the day and is often lower than the standard fixed rate. The program has been available since May 2007 and boasts more than 2,000 participants, several of whom recently sang its praises to CNT Energy staff and local newspaper reporters.
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Illinois Smart Grid Initiative Launches

annette — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 20:01:13 +0000

The Illinois Smart Grid Initiative is a voluntary group of state and local government, consumer, business, environmental, and utility stakeholders that will work together to examine how consumers can benefit from comprehensive grid modernization in Illinois. The Initiative is a project of CNT and is funded by the Galvin Project and assisted by the Galvin Electricity Initiative and USDOE.
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Get Ready to Save on Electricity this Summer

annette — Tue, 27 May 2008 18:40:10 +0000

This month, CNT Energy will host workshops to help Illinois households manage their summer electricity costs. Attend a free Summer Energy Saving Workshop to get the information you need to enjoy the summer without blowing your budget on electricity.
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Eco-Friendly Landlords Make ‘Going Green’ More Than a Habit

annette — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 22:08:19 +0000

You’ve gotten rid of your car, shop the local farmer’s market with your cloth bag, and purchased green tags to offset your vacation. And still not quite satisfied you are doing all you can to reduce your carbon footprint. Adapting your way of life is important so you want to feel like you’ve made strides that impact both the environment and your wallet.

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Leaders Unite to Preserve the Chicago Region’s Affordable Rental Housing

annette — Thu, 31 May 2007 17:08:28 +0000

Affordable housing, especially in the Chicago region, is increasingly difficult to acquire and is a threat to the economic future of the region. Today, area leaders in government, non-profit and the business sectors unveiled a program to reverse these dramatic losses in the affordable rental housing stock. Created in 2005, The Preservation Compact is a project of the Urban Land Institute and is supported by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation

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CNT’s Energy Cooperative in The New York Times

annette — Mon, 08 Jan 2007 23:49:23 +0000

Monday’s front page of The New York Times (01/08/07) covered CNT’s Community Energy Cooperative and its role in today’s energy market. Read here about the Energy-Smart Pricing Plan and how consumers are paying for their electricity by the hour.

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The Innovative Mind behind Energy-Smart Pricing

annette — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 17:19:22 +0000

At the Chicago Sun-Times Innovations Awards ceremony in October, where the Community Energy Cooperative’s Energy-Smart Pricing Plan was recognized for saving consumers money while reducing stress on the electricity grid, to the delight of everyone from the Coop, Maurie Gamze was in attendance.

CNT's CEO, Kathy Tholin, in receiving the Innovations Award, recognized Maurie from the podium as the real innovator behind the Energy-Smart Pricing Plan.


Maurie Gamze is a visionary engineer, who served on the Board at CNT and recently retired from a staff position at the Community Energy Cooperative.  While working with the Cooperative, Gamze applied his decades of energy management experience to develop the framework of the ground-breaking electricity pricing program.
Today the Energy-Smart Pricing Plan has demonstrated that hourly pricing can save customers money, encourage energy efficiency, and reduce strain on the electricity infrastructure during hours when demand is highest.  We were happy that Mr. Gamze was in attendance to take part in the honor of this innovation.

Customers who are interested in receiving more information about how they can enroll in the new, expanded program can fill out an interest form at www.energycooperative.org.

Energy Smart-Pricing Plan Wins Chicago Innovation Award

annette — Mon, 23 Oct 2006 22:53:20 +0000

We just got word that the Community Energy Cooperative’s Energy Smart-Pricing Plan is a recipient of a 2006 Chicago Innovation Award. The awards were given to ten groups that over the last year have displayed outstanding innovation in products and services that not only inspire and educate others, but solve unmet consumer needs. The ESPP was selected amongst over 225 applicants.

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Energy-Smart Pricing Plan Attracts Attention

annette — Thu, 07 Sep 2006 20:52:27 +0000

Changes are in the works for Illinois electricity markets, as deregulation will produce higher rates in 2007. CNT’s Community Energy Cooperative is promoting new options that will benefit local residents, and the Cooperative’s Energy-Smart Pricing Plan is attracting attention.

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