Westborough Power Choice is a municipal electricity aggregation, which is a type of group electricity buying program.
Typically, your electric utility, National Grid, provides two sets of services to you:
But in Massachusetts, consumers actually have three options for electricity supply:
Westborough Power Choice provides:
Municipal aggregation was approved at the March 14, 2015, Town Meeting. After a period of state regulatory review and approval, Westborough Power Choice launched with February 2016 meter reads.
The Town of Westborough has signed a contract with First Point Power to supply electricity to Westborough Power Choice participants until November 2027. The Town intends to sign a new electricity supply contract when the First Point Power contract ends. The electricity supplier and renewable energy content may change, and the price may be higher or lower than the current price. You will continue in the same program option at the new price unless you inform the program otherwise. The Town will provide advance notice of any such changes, and you will be free to opt out or change your option before the changes take effect. However, if the Town decides the program is not beneficial to the community, it is free to cancel the program at the end of the First Point Power contract and return all participants to National Grid’s Basic Service.
Municipal electricity aggregation was enabled by the Massachusetts Restructuring Act of 1997 (Chapter 164, Section 134), which allows local municipal governments to aggregate the electricity supply loads of the electricity consumers within their geographic boundaries in order to negotiate more favorable terms with an electricity supplier.
State law requires aggregations to use an automatic enrollment model. Westborough did not have a choice as to whether the program would be opt in or opt out.
However, participation is never required. You have the option to opt out before being automatically enrolled, or you may try the program and leave later. There is never any fee or penalty to opt out, and you may do so at any time. Opt out.
If you have received a notice of automatic enrollment from the Town, you do not need to take any action. Your account will be automatically enrolled after the opt-out deadline listed in the notice. View the notice of automatic enrollment.
If you have not received a notice of automatic enrollment, you may request enrollment.
Visit the Participating page for more information.
To choose Westborough’s 100% Green Plan or Budget Plan, complete the online form or call customer support at 844-483-5004. Be sure to have a National Grid electric bill with you when you fill out the form or call, as you’ll need information from your bill to make the request.
Participation is open to all metered electricity accounts in Westborough.
For more details, please see the Participating page.
Yes, however, if you opt out and then wish to re-enroll in the program, you are not guaranteed the program price when you re-enroll. The electricity supplier is entitled to charge you a market price for the remainder of the current electricity supply contract, which may be higher. If the program’s electricity supplier decides to charge market pricing, you will be notified before enrollment and can decide then whether to continue with enrollment or not.
You will see two changes on your National Grid electric bill as a result of participating in Westborough Power Choice:
Additionally, the amount of electricity you receive from renewable sources will increase if you participate in Westborough’s Standard or 100% Green plans.
Otherwise, everything else will remain the same. You will continue to receive your electric bill from National Grid, you will continue to pay National Grid using whatever method you have set up with them, and you will continue to call National Grid if the power goes out.
If you have National Grid’s Budget Plan, it continues to apply to your whole bill with no change.
If you are eligible for any discounts from National Grid, such as a low-income discount or fuel assistance, those discounts will be unaffected by your participation in Westborough Power Choice.
Westborough Power Choice will be integrated into your existing electric bill. You will not receive any additional bills because of participating in Westborough Power Choice.
National Grid continues to send your bill, and you continue to pay them using whatever method you have set up with them.
To see what your National Grid bill will look like, view an example bill.
The program will appear on your National Grid electric bill, and your Electricity Supply price will reflect the plan you are enrolled in. View an example bill to see where the program and price appear on your bill.
No. There will be no change in the consistency or reliability of the electricity coming into your home or business as a result of participating in Westborough Power Choice.
National Grid remains responsible for ensuring the uninterrupted delivery of electricity in Westborough. Further, they have no preference whether they are your electricity supplier or you choose another supplier. National Grid does not profit from the supply portion of your bill. They make their profit from the delivery portion.
If you participate in Westborough’s Standard Plan or 100% Green Plan, it means more of the electricity that is put onto the grid on your behalf will come from renewable sources, but this does not change the overall reliability of the electricity on the grid.
Yes. If you are participating in community solar, or if you are receiving net metering credits or incentive payments for electricity produced by solar panels on your property, you will continue to receive your credits or incentive payments as a participant in Westborough Power Choice.
Further, there will be no change in how they are calculated. Their calculation is not connected to your electricity supply price.
However, you could see a benefit. If your electricity supply charge is lower because the Westborough Power Choice price is lower than National Grid’s Basic Service price, the credits or incentive payments could go further in offsetting that charge.
Please note, however, that because National Grid’s Basic Service prices change and their future prices are not known, savings compared with National Grid can never be guaranteed.
Program prices are available on the Prices page.
To see how much your monthly supply charge will be, use the calculator.
Maybe! According to a report by UMass Amherst, the majority of communities with aggregation programs do see some savings compared with their utility’s Basic Service prices.
However, Westborough Power Choice offers long-term fixed prices, while National Grid’s prices change every 6 months or less. As a result, savings compared with National Grid can never be guaranteed.
If you are not happy with the program, you are always free to leave the program at any time with no fee or penalty.
If you are eligible for any discounts, including a low-income discount or fuel assistance, you will continue to receive that discount with no change.
If you have National Grid’s Budget Plan, it continues to apply to your whole bill with no change.
No. The delivery portion of your electric bill is not impacted by whether or not you participate in Westborough Power Choice. These charges are regulated.
