COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa, Nov. 5 /PRNewswire/ -- MidAmerican Energy (NYSE: MEC) and the Iowa Utilities Board have chosen Council Bluffs, Iowa, to be the participating community for the MidAmerican Electric Choice project, in which at least 15,000 Iowa families and 2,000 small businesses will have the chance to test competition among electricity providers.
The MidAmerican Electric Choice project is Iowa's first test program for competition in the residential and small-business market. The program, which is scheduled to last for two years, will allow customers in Council Bluffs to choose among several electricity providers, including MidAmerican, and to have that energy delivered by MidAmerican.
Customer sign-up will begin in April, 1999, after a program to educate customers on how competition will work. Part of the customer education process will include a special MidAmerican web site that will contain information about the program and answer frequently asked questions about the pilot.
Businesses in Council Bluffs will be eligible for the program if their annual peak demand is less than four megawatts. Earlier this year, the IUB approved MidAmerican Energy's pilot project offering large industrial and commercial customers the opportunity to choose their energy provider. That plan is only for businesses requiring more than four megawatts of electric load. The plan, which is Iowa's first open access electric retail project, currently requires the approval of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
"We are pleased to be able to extend an invitation to residents and businesses to participate in the MidAmerican Electric Choice project," said Stanley J. Bright, chairman and chief executive officer of MidAmerican Energy. "Council Bluffs will be an excellent test market because it provides a good customer mix."
Bright noted that the purpose of a competitive energy market is to provide savings and other benefits to customers. That concept is best tested through initiatives like this one, he said.
"This project will help MidAmerican Energy and our customers prepare for competition," Bright said. MidAmerican supports competitive choice and is actively working toward the passage of legislation in Iowa to allow competition in the electric industry.
"Board staff has worked closely with MidAmerican to develop this pilot project," said Allan T. Thoms, chairman of the Iowa Utilities Board. "We are especially interested in three aspects of this pilot: the customer's response to the opportunity to choose their electric supplier, testing the electric system reliability in a competitive choice situation and determining the interest of alternative suppliers."
"This project is exciting because it gives our residents the first chance to test competition," said Council Bluffs Mayor Tom Hanafan. "Being the pilot city puts us on the map and we're looking forward to it."
Although expected to last at least two years, the project could be extended or expanded to other cities in the event that legislative action opens the electric industry to competition.
MidAmerican Energy Company, Iowa's largest energy company, provides electric service to 648,000 customers and natural gas to 619,000 customers in Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska and South Dakota. Company headquarters are in Des Moines, Iowa. Information on MidAmerican is available on the Internet at http://www.midamerican.com
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