Confusion. Miscommunication. Those two words best describe Perry Mitchell’s current situation as he attempts to secure a cheaper electricity rate for 2,500 area residents. Mitchell, who formed the aggregation group Consumers for Alternative Power in May to counter rising energy prices, has spoke at homeowners’ association meetings, solicited individual homeowners to join his group and has been working voluntarily to find them savings.
Just last week, that process seemed to be stalled, when the Public Service Commission’s Chief of Technical Services Connie McDowell told the Coastal Point that Mitchell needed a license to serve as a “broker” for such a group.
“By Delaware law, whether someone takes title or not, they classify them as a broker. They have to get a license,” McDowell said in an earlier interview.
Early this week, after a staffer spoke to Mitchell, McDowell said that Mitchell doesn’t need a license if he merely negotiate rates — as she said before — but would if he took title and signed contractual agreements for the group’s members.
After that was cleared up, Mitchell said he’d set up his first formal meeting for late this month with Washington Gas Energy Services to “negotiate rates.” Kimberly August, a Washington Gas spokesman, seemed to have a different idea.
“It will be an initial conversation,” said August, adding that negotiation talks would be “premature. We have no idea about the scope of the business venture he’s proposed. I really don’t know.”
Mitchell, seemingly perplexed, said that after months of work, he is ready to talk about rates, not his proposal — something he said some WGES employees have already heard.
“I’m not going to go to Virginia just to sit down and say hello to them,” Mitchell said. “We’ve been talking back and forth. I assumed we’re to the point about talking about a bid.”
August said previously that WGES has formally conducted such business with aggregate groups but wants to formally hear Mitchell’s proposal.
“We welcome the opportunity to explore the opportunity,” August said last week. But, “At this juncture with Mr. Mitchell, no one has had a conversation about being a supplier for an aggregate group.”
On May 1, Delmarva Power residential rates rose about 59 percent because of rising fossil-fuel prices worldwide, prompting Mitchell and others to look for alternative solutions. After talking to homeowners and representatives from local homeowners associations, Mitchell began negotiating with 2,500 residential accounts and hoped to receive a rate, from WGES in particular, of less than 10 cents.
“I think that’s a reasonable expectation at this point,” said Dick Anderson, a principal with CQI Associates, who negotiated the commercial rate of 9.897 cents for the Bethany-Fenwick Area Chamber of Commerce. “I think that’s a good plan.”
Coastal Point coverage of Mitchell’s effort yielded additional interest from residents of South Bethany at that town’s monthly council meeting Aug. 11, with plans from some of the residents to contact Mitchell and possibly pursue joining a residential electric cooperative.