To the Editor:

After reading John Karlson’s recent letter to The Newtown Bee, The Burden Of ‘Supply’ And ‘Delivery,’ about his concerns regarding his Eversource bill, we wanted to take the opportunity to provide some additional information. Energy bills are confusing, and we hope this breakdown of the Eversource bill is helpful for Mr Karlson and other customers to see exactly what they’re paying for each month.

As Mr Karlson pointed out, our customers’ energy bills are made up of two parts — the supply charge and delivery charge. The supply charge reflects the straight cost of the energy that customers use in their homes. As required by Connecticut regulation, the energy supply price changes twice a year — January 1st and July 1st for residential customers who receive their energy supply from Eversource. We do not earn a profit on the cost of electricity — we only charge customers what we pay generators for producing the power.

The delivery charge is made up of several fees and charges, which fall into three categories: Transmission; Distribution, Operations and Service; and Public Policy.

So what makes up the three categories in the delivery side of the bill?

Transmission is the cost of building, maintaining and operating the regional transmission system that brings electricity from power generators to the local distribution system.

As an example, this is the breakdown of an electric bill of $150:

*Supply (cost of energy) = $67.50

*Transmission = $19.50

*Distribution, Operations and Service = $48

*Public Policy = $15

Distribution, Operations and Service charges encompass how we safely and reliably deliver power from the transmission system to homes and businesses. Beyond delivering the power, this service includes the cost of skilled employees and the technologies they use to operate and maintain the local system of poles and wires and provide customer service. It also includes the cost of improvements to make the electric grid more resilient and reliable.

The public policy portion includes costs mandated by the state and federal government for financial assistance and energy efficiency programs, purchasing renewable and carbon-free electricity, and funding solar and electric vehicle incentives to help make it easier to take advantage of clean energy options.

The supply and delivery charges are both driven by the amount of energy used each month. The more energy a customer uses, the higher both the supply and delivery portions of the bill will be, especially as we approach warmer weather. On average, Connecticut customers use 35% more electricity during the summer months, primarily to stay cool.

We encourage Mr Karlson and all of our customers to take advantage of the many energy efficiency programs and services we offer that can help them save money and energy at Eversource.com/home-savings. We also offer a variety of payment and bill assistance programs. Customers can find out more by visiting Eversource.com/BillHelp or calling us at 800-286-2828 for guidance in choosing the right program or option for them.

Kind regards,

Jared Lawrence

Eversource Chief Customer Officer