SPRINGFIELD, Ill., June 30, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Ameren
Illinois customers are saving on their electric bill as a result of
a new state law that went into effect on June 1.
The Future Energy Jobs Act (FEJA), signed into law by Governor
Bruce Rauner on December 7, 2016, is expected to reduce Ameren
Illinois residential customers' future bills by an average of
$1.69 per month over 10 years.
"Customers in central and southern Illinois are reaping the benefits of
Illinois' progressive energy
policies," said Richard J. Mark,
chairman and president of Ameren Illinois. "Energy companies, like
Ameren Illinois, have an opportunity to continue modernizing our
electric infrastructure, which has resulted in a 17 percent
increase in system reliability for customers and created hundreds
of direct and indirect jobs. We are also strengthening our
investments in energy efficiency and giving more low-income
families the opportunity to take advantage of energy-saving
programs."
"From the first day this legislation was proposed, our singular
focus was on ensuring Ameren Illinois customers would benefit from
any bill before we would commit our support," Mark continued. "I
want to thank leaders of the House and Senate, the Governor and
regulators for working with us to keep the interests of downstate
energy consumers in mind as this bill was
negotiated."
Under the new law, Ameren Illinois, a subsidiary of Ameren
Corporation (NYSE: AEE), expects to invest approximately
$99 million in energy efficiency each
year for the next four years. Over the past nine years, Ameren
Illinois' energy efficiency programs have helped residential and
business customers reduce their energy consumption by 11.8 million
megawatts, the equivalent of 1.2 million homes' electricity use for
one year.
In addition to supporting new efficiency programs, FEJA will
help keep two Exelon nuclear facilities in operation, preserve more
than 4,000 jobs, and ensure the availability of lower-cost clean
energy for consumers. It also significantly restructures the
renewable portfolio standard mechanism, creating new opportunities
for additional wind and solar resource development in Illinois.
Ameren Illinois customers can expect to save more money on their
electric bill in 2018. Under a separate proposal filed April 13 with the Illinois Commerce Commission,
the company announced its plans to decrease its delivery service
rates in 2018. An Ameren Illinois residential customer who uses an
average 10,000 kWh of electricity per year would save approximately
$1.70 per month. The Commission is
expected to issue its final order in December.
About Ameren Illinois
Ameren Illinois delivers energy to 1.2 million electric and 816,000
natural gas customers in Illinois.
Our mission is to power the quality of life. Our service territory
covers more than 1,200 communities and 43,700 square miles. For
more information, visit AmerenIllinois.com, find us on Twitter
@AmerenIllinois or Facebook.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
Statements in this release not based on historical facts are
considered "forward-looking" and, accordingly, involve risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially
from those discussed. Although such forward-looking statements have
been made in good faith and are based on reasonable assumptions,
there is no assurance that the expected results will be achieved.
These statements include (without limitation) statements as to
future expectations, beliefs, plans, strategies, objectives,
events, conditions, and financial performance. In connection with
the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995, we are providing this cautionary statement to
identify important factors that could cause actual results to
differ materially from those anticipated. The following factors, in
addition to those discussed under Risk Factors in our Annual Report
on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31,
2016, and elsewhere in this release and in our other filings
with the Securities and Exchange Commission, could cause actual
results to differ materially from management expectations suggested
in such forward-looking statements:
- regulatory, judicial, or legislative actions, including any
changes in regulatory policies and ratemaking determinations, such
as those that may result from Ameren Illinois' April 2017 annual electric distribution formula
rate update filing, and future regulatory, judicial, or legislative
actions that change regulatory recovery mechanisms;
- the effect of Ameren Illinois participating in a
performance-based formula ratemaking process under the Illinois
Energy Infrastructure Modernization Act, including the direct
relationship between Ameren Illinois' return on common equity and
30-year United States Treasury bond yields and the related
financial commitments;
- the effects of changes in federal, state, or local laws and
other governmental actions, including monetary, fiscal, and energy
policies;
- the effects of changes in federal, state, or local tax laws,
regulations, interpretations, or rates and any challenges to the
tax positions taken by the Ameren Companies;
- the effects on demand for our services resulting from
technological advances, including advances in customer energy
efficiency and private generation sources, which generate
electricity at the site of consumption and are becoming more
cost-competitive;
- Ameren Illinois' achievement of FEJA electric energy efficiency
goals and the resulting impact on its allowed return on program
investments;
- our ability to align overall spending, both operating and
capital, with frameworks established by our regulators in our
attempt to earn our allowed return on equity;
- the timing of increasing capital expenditure and operating
expense requirements and our ability to recover these costs in a
timely manner;
- the cost and availability of purchased power, zero-energy
credits, renewable energy credits, and natural gas for
distribution; and the level and volatility of future market prices
for such commodities, including our ability to recover the costs
for such commodities and our customers' tolerance for the related
rate increases;
- business and economic conditions, including their impact on
interest rates, collection of our receivable balances, and demand
for our products;
- disruptions of the capital markets, deterioration in credit
metrics of the Ameren Companies, or other events that may have an
adverse effect on the cost or availability of capital, including
short-term credit and liquidity;
- the actions of credit rating agencies and the effects of such
actions;
- the effects of strategic initiatives, including mergers,
acquisitions, and divestitures;
- the impact of current environmental regulations and new, more
stringent, or changing requirements, including those related to
carbon dioxide, other emissions and discharges, and energy
efficiency, that are enacted over time and that could increase our
costs or investment requirements, reduce our customers' demand for
electricity or natural gas, or otherwise have a negative financial
effect; and
- acts of sabotage, war, terrorism, or other intentionally
disruptive acts.
New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for
management to predict all of such factors, nor can it assess the
impact of each such factor on the business or the extent to which
any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to
differ materially from those contained or implied in any
forward-looking statement. Given these uncertainties, undue
reliance should not be placed on these forward-looking statements.
Except to the extent required by the federal securities laws, we
undertake no obligation to update or revise publicly any
forward-looking statements to reflect new information or future
events.
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SOURCE Ameren Illinois