What and how do you determine if switching to alternative energy

[MyNameGoesHere]

supplier is economical? I am in Maryland under the thumb of BGE. I have tried to figure out what their rates and tariffs are and it is making my head explode. It seems i have a choice of going to all <100%> wind provider at .172 kw/hour. But i do not know if that will put me in the poor house or be comparable to my current soul sucking provider. Please can anyone who has done this help me out? I know i am talking money here but it is a factor in my life and i don't want to make a big mistake.

[madeline_con]

1. You need to consult with the company who sells the turbine...

and add the cost of installation, unless you DIY, and figure out over the long haul how long until it pays for itself, as some systems claim.

Personally, I think the best first step might be solar hot water. Doable without too much roof space, not prohibitively expensive.

Not sure about the wind turbines, though.

Spell edit

[kristopher]

2. Did you check BGE's website?

http://www.bge.com/portal/site/bge/menuitem.59a6ce21fee4f6c33c88ff10016176a0/

Also, you wrote: i have a choice of going to all <100%> wind provider at .172 kw/hour.

If that is 17.2 cents ($0.172) /Kwh then it is probably going to raise your monthly bill by a fair amount.
This is described on the BGE website:
"* For electricity supply, use the Price to Compare, which appears on your bill below the Summary Box, to compare BGE's prices to supplier offers. This price reflects the average annual price per kilowatt hour (kWh) for generation and transmission for a BGE customer in your rate class. It does not include the delivery price." http://www.bge.com/portal/site/bge/menuitem.59a6ce21fee4f6c33c88ff10016176a0/

That is referring to the price you pay for the electricity itself without the delivery and transmission charges included. It probably makes up about 50% of the total monthly bill. Multiply the number of kWh you use each month times the price of the wind and substitute that for the average that BGE charges, then recalculate your total bill.


Be sure and ask if transmission charges will be affected. Overall, I'd guess your bill will go up 20-30%.

However, you will have the satisfaction of knowing that you are supporting a technology that can help save the planet.

[MyNameGoesHere]

3. yes i did that's when my head exploded.

I downloaded their tariffs and rates sheet and it is gibberish on purpose i am sure. Thanks for the tips it makes a little more sense now.

[JohnWxy]

4. I hate to make you feel worse but take a look at the link to see what wind power costs.

It's a fraction of what your utility is charging. The only thing I can figure is they want to write of the cost of the wind farm in about three years (instead of the useful life of about 25 yrs)!

http://www.awea.org/pubs/factsheets/EconomicsOfWind-Feb2005.pdf

I think they have found a green (meaning money) way of boosting their profits or perhaps cutting some nuke losses. Utility profits are regulated but only in the aggregate.

[kristopher]

5. I don't think that is applicable

That is an overview. Maryland is wind poor except for the offshore wind resource that has yet to be developed. The wind that is in the area is small scale located on a few ridgelines in the western part of the state, so it's price is probably affected by both demand and transmission charges. I should repeat though, that the largest part of the high price relative to your AWEA document is due to the failure to achieve the savings of economy of scale.

BlueWater Wind is in negotiations with Maryland right now to sell excess power from their just approved wind farm off the coast of Delaware. It should start coming on line in about 2-3 years. It is also just the beginning as they are planning to headquarter a large scale midAtlantic operation in Delaware.