Rhode Islanders can’t catch a break from their utility company. Rhode Island Energy has announced a summer rate that is 30% higher than last summer. This is being widely publicized as a “relief” because it is a reduction from the winter rate we’ve just experienced. But those seasonal reductions are common. The summer rate is always significantly lower than the winter rate. The real news is that, this year, the summer rate is 30% higher than the previous year.  And Rhode Island energy is already predicting that next winter it will be even higher than it was this past winter.

As the Providence Journal reported “Rhode Island Energy expects next winter’s energy rate to hit 18 cents a kilowatt hour…That would be higher than this winter’s rate of 17.8 cents per kilowatt hour.” There is no relief in sight.

Unfortunately, rates aren’t the only way Rhode Islanders are getting zapped. Over the winter months, Rhode Island Energy waived their standard “customer charge.” This was meant to cushion the blow of the 47% increase we saw in October. Well, it turns out that that waiver was really more like a zero interest loan. Over the next six months Rhode Island Energy’s customers will be paying double the usual customer charge to make up for the lost revenue from the previous six months.

With rates going up this summer, and set to return to the heights we just experienced this winter, the myth that electric rates are going to come back down can be dismissed.

It’s time to start looking at other options. Today’s solar technology allows individuals to produce the power they need for themselves. It frees them from reliance upon a utility company that doesn’t protect them, and an energy market that keeps getting more and more expensive. Solar is one of those technologies that just makes sense. It’s cheaper, cleaner, and completely predictable in its cost.

Don’t get stuck with high electricity rates and a “profits-first” company. Take control of your power, save money, and contribute to a better future for us all. Customers are saving up to 50% in their first year with solar, and their savings will only compound over time.

Talk to a solar advisor today. Start saving right away and lock in your rates for the next 25 years. Find out what you could be saving.