WATERFORD, Mich. (WXYZ) — DTE Energy's new summer electric rates have now begun as people look for more ways to try to save on their energy usage.
"One of the biggest offenders of electricity is an electric range," said Marlene Blaszczyk, who plans to make good use of her outdoor grill.
"I'll be using my barbecue grill almost every night for dinner," Marlene said about the move that will also help keep the house cooler.
"Marlene has put together the steps we're going to take," said Hank Janicki, who just added shade sails to their beautiful backyard deck area to help keep the east side of the house shaded.
Even before DTE's new Time of Day pricing, Marlene and Hank were on top of keep their energy usage relatively low. Now that's paying off as peak hour pricing increases by about 4 cents a kilowatt-hour.
Peak hours for DTE are 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday. From June to September, when air conditioners are in high use as people look to stay cool, the price per kilowatt-hour is 20.98 cents per kilowatt-hour. From October to May it's 16.75 cents perkilowatt-hour.
Off-peak hour hour rates are 15.45 cents for the other 20 hours of the day and all weekend.
DTE released this statement:
The Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) has asked Michigan’s electric utilities to implement new Time of Day rates to help meet the demands of an increasingly electrified world. Time of Day rates better reflect the cost to generate energy at different times of day. Summer rates went into effect on June 1 and continue through the end of September. The on-peak hours, when costs are higher, are 3 p.m. – 7 p.m. Monday through Friday all year long. Customers can save by shifting their energy use to the lower-peak hours, 20 hours each weekday and all weekend. The new rate structure is revenue neutral to DTE and cost neutral to customers.
DTE is encouraging customers to visit their website to see how they might be able to find ways to save.
