Big increase in PG&E E-9 rates (N. Cal.)

[gregincal]

Thanks for the comparison charts. So looking at this at first glance, wouldn't it be more expensive compared to the current E9A? Not sure why people saying it will less since we lose the 4 cents to 10 cents during off peak.

It all depends on what tier you are in. E9a tier 4 and 5 off peak is 20 cents.

 

[ChriZ]

It all depends on what tier you are in. E9a tier 4 and 5 off peak is 20 cents.

Okay that makes sense. Thanks

Do you have all the tier prices for the new plan? I didn't see it in the PDF linked.

 

[strider]

Okay that makes sense. Thanks

Do you have all the tier prices for the new plan? I didn't see it in the PDF linked.

There are no tiers in the new plan. That's the whole point - it's flat rate all you can eat based purely on time of day. With 2 Teslas in the family we are in Tier 5 every month so this will save us money.

 

[napabill]

The whole tier thing is so hard to follow in practice. Here is what my bill said for Non-Peak last month:
Summer Off-Peak
Baseline 204.3800 $0.03855 $7.88
101-130% 61.3140 $0.05726 $3.51
131-200% 143.0660 $0.16638 $23.80
201-300% 204.3800 $0.20638 $42.18
Over 300% 118.5431 $0.20638 $24.46
731.6831 $0.13918 $101.84
Notice that "Baseline" kWh are the same as 201-300%. And that is the case in all tiers. Do not get it!:cursing: I'll be happy to move on to a non-tiered structure.

 

[ChriZ]

There are no tiers in the new plan. That's the whole point - it's flat rate all you can eat based purely on time of day. With 2 Teslas in the family we are in Tier 5 every month so this will save us money.

Got it. Makes sense. Thanks for the info.

 

[smorgasbord]

I'm trying to do some comparison analysis, but I'm stymied by the change in timing. For summer months, the new plan is pretty clearly better for me:

My Jun bill: 230kWh of peak, 414kWh of part-peak, and 869kWh of off-peak cost me $367.69
At the new $.38/$.21/$.10 that's $261.24

I can do that comparison because the peak time M-F is exactly the same and while it adds 3pm-7pm on weekends to peak instead of 5pm-9pm for park-peak I do get an extra hour of off-peak at 11pm to midnight. That's not going to cost me more than the $100 savings.

However, for winter it's a lot different since we go from no peak rates currently to the same time periods as summer, which includes peak rates 2pm-9pm weekdays and now 3pm-7pm weekends. This means some rate draw at $0.27/kWh in winter versus the previous $0.10-$0.34/kWh part-peak rate in Winter. I can't really calculate the cost differential since I don't have actual times of use - just the peak/part/off summaries. I suspect I'll pay more in winter than I do today, but maybe it'll just break-even.

My Jan bill was: 851kWh of part-peak and 821kWh of off-peak for $290.60.

If I split the part-peak in the same ratio as summer (1/3 peak, 2/3 part-peak), the I'd be:

304kWh of peak, 547 of part-peak, 821 of off-peak (at $.27/$.16/$.10) for $251.70

So, it makes sense for me to switch no matter what, right? I often blow these math calculations, so can someone double-check me and my assumptions? I can't imagine I'd just 50% more peak time in winter than summer, so maybe I'd be even better off. Or, maybe my summer peak time is smaller because we're trying harder to delay clothes dryer and dishwashers in summer than winter. I do think it pays for me to switch now regardless. Thoughts?

The Summer/Winter cut-off date is Halloween, so I've got about 2 months left of summer savings. I'm trying to decide whether I should switch now, or just before the Winter/Summer cut-off on April 30th.

Suggestions/comments welcome.

 

[gregincal]

I'm trying to do some comparison analysis, but I'm stymied by the change in timing. For summer months, the new plan is pretty clearly better for me:

My Jun bill: 230kWh of peak, 414kWh of part-peak, and 869kWh of off-peak cost me $367.69
At the new $.38/$.21/$.10 that's $261.24

I can do that comparison because the peak time M-F is exactly the same and while it adds 3pm-7pm on weekends to peak instead of 5pm-9pm for park-peak I do get an extra hour of off-peak at 11pm to midnight. That's not going to cost me more than the $100 savings.

However, for winter it's a lot different since we go from no peak rates currently to the same time periods as summer, which includes peak rates 2pm-9pm weekdays and now 3pm-7pm weekends. This means some rate draw at $0.27/kWh in winter versus the previous $0.10-$0.34/kWh part-peak rate in Winter. I can't really calculate the cost differential since I don't have actual times of use - just the peak/part/off summaries. I suspect I'll pay more in winter than I do today, but maybe it'll just break-even.

My Jan bill was: 851kWh of part-peak and 821kWh of off-peak for $290.60.

If I split the part-peak in the same ratio as summer (1/3 peak, 2/3 part-peak), the I'd be:

304kWh of peak, 547 of part-peak, 821 of off-peak (at $.27/$.16/$.10) for $251.70

So, it makes sense for me to switch no matter what, right? I often blow these math calculations, so can someone double-check me and my assumptions? I can't imagine I'd just 50% more peak time in winter than summer, so maybe I'd be even better off. Or, maybe my summer peak time is smaller because we're trying harder to delay clothes dryer and dishwashers in summer than winter. I do think it pays for me to switch now regardless. Thoughts?

The Summer/Winter cut-off date is Halloween, so I've got about 2 months left of summer savings. I'm trying to decide whether I should switch now, or just before the Winter/Summer cut-off on April 30th.

Suggestions/comments welcome.

You should be able to look at your hourly usage on the PGE website (assuming you have a SmartMeter). While it would be a pain to calculate for the whole month, you could certainly look at a typical day.

 

[dmunjal]

I'm switching and I think a simple way to decide is if you end up in Tiers 4 or 5 today, then definitely switch and try to use as much as possible from 11pm to 7am.

 

[JPP]

I am taking a different approach. I use lots of electricity (big house, AC, people home during the day, 1 Tesla now...planning on a 2nd). A rate plan change for me is just rearranging the pain. I have just finished having SolarCity install a 16kW system under a Power Purchase Agreement. I simply agree to buy my power from them instead of PG&E at a fixed rate of about 17 cents/kWh. They deal with the rate plan, metering, output, performance, repairs, service, etc, etc. No out-of-pocket for me, no lease. We will see how it goes.

 

[miimura]

I posted a link to my XLS spreadsheet that calculates the PG&E rates in another thread here. It calculates E-1, E-6, E-9A, EV-A for a month of downloaded SmartMeter data.

 

[srl99]

I'm switching and I think a simple way to decide is if you end up in Tiers 4 or 5 today, then definitely switch and try to use as much as possible from 11pm to 7am.

The cross-over between E-9 and EV is in tier 3. This is only an approximation as the time periods are different. If you are in Tier 4 or higher, EV is probably better.

This is all rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. PG&E is overcharging residential customers, SMUD, Alameda Power, Silicon Valley Power, etc ... are charging 10-11c/kWH. Take Silicon Valley power as an example - 10c/kWH all day and night. They don't have an EV plan, they don't need it.

Make sure to lobby the CPUC for the PG&E "General Rate Case". "Who killed the Electric Car?" "PG&E."

 

[strider]

I just got my first bill on EV-A and it is $50 cheaper than the prior month with very similar total usage. We don't have A/C so our baseline is pretty consistent month-month until we turn the heat on. So it looks like EV-A was the right call for us at least in the summer (we were in Tier 5 in all categories under E9). Have to see what happens in the winter.