(Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2020) – Mayor Lovely A. Warren today announced that the administrators of the City’s community choice aggregation (CCA) program, operating as Rochester Community Power, are ready to help residents learn how collective energy purchases through a CCA can reduce the city’s output of greenhouse gases while maintaining competitive rates among customers.
“I am very excited to see our community choice aggregation program reach the point where we can show our residents how their monthly energy purchases can play a critical role in preserving the environment,” said Mayor Warren. “Working with our partners from Joule Community Power and Roctricity we are becoming a cleaner, greener more sustainable city. Protecting our environment helps create more jobs, safer and more vibrant neighborhoods and better educational opportunities for our citizens.”
CCA leverages the collective buying power of city residents to purchase electricity from renewable sources at competitive rates, which creates market pressure to increase the supply of clean energy and reduce the demand for carbon-producing fossil fuels.
The City authorized its CCA program in 2019 and has selected Joule Community Power, a division of Joule Assets of Katonah, NY, to administer the program with Roctricity serving as the local partner for community outreach and education.
“We are thrilled to be help the Rochester community drive the demand for clean energy,” said Joule Community Power’s Director, Glenn Weinberg. “Rochester is the largest municipality in New York State to move forward with a CCA, which sets an important precedent and positions this city as a national example for community scale clean energy purchases.”
“Roctricity is proud to help our city move us closer to a carbon-free future by flooding the grid clean, renewable energy,” said Roctricity Partner Melissa Carlson. “We are happy to help our friends and neighbors learn they can buy clean energy at a competitive rate while also doing their part to preserve our environment for future generations.”
City residents can choose to opt out of the program. Regardless of participation in the program, however, Rochester Gas and Electric will continue to deliver the electricity and invoice customers.
Rochester Community Power will hold virtual public hearings about the program at 5 p.m. on Nov.19; and at 7 p.m. on Nov. 30, Dec.9 and Dec. 10. All meetings will have ASL interpreters and the Nov. 30 meeting will have a Spanish interpreter.
To participate in a meeting and learn more, visit
www.rochestercommunitypower.com/.
