JACKSON, Mich., Dec. 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- As cold weather starts to creep into Michigan, Consumers Energy is alerting customers to a free service to help people track their home energy use. The service is called the Bill Analyzer and is available via the utility's website, http://www.consumersenergy.com/ . Approximately 162,000 Consumers Energy customers are using the service, a 23 percent increase in the past year. "The fact that more customers are using the Bill Analyzer service shows that people want helpful information about how to manage their home energy usage. We encourage customers to become informed about their home energy use, so that they can make tailored energy conservation decisions," said Sue Swan, the utility's vice president of customer operations. "The Bill Analyzer service allows customers to examine their current electric and gas use in comparison to previous months. Knowing how a home uses energy is helpful in making decisions about how and when to conserve energy," noted Swan. First-time users of the Bill Analyzer will need to fill out an easy-to- follow form to set up a customer profile at the utility's Online Customer Service Center. The Bill Analyzer service will ask for basic information on a home, such as number of rooms, kinds of appliances and number of residents. The service then provides a near-instant analysis to help customers understand why energy use has increased or decreased for a selected period. Consumers Energy's website also includes a new section, "Energy Answers," which provides free tips on home and business energy conservation, as well as other services. Consumers Energy, the principal subsidiary of CMS Energy, provides natural gas and electricity to more than six million of the state's 10 million residents in all 68 Lower Peninsula counties. DATASOURCE: Consumers Energy CONTACT: Jeff Holyfield, +1-517-788-2394, or Dan Bishop, +1-517-788-2395, both of Consumers Energy Web site: http://www.consumersenergy.com/ Company News On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/203850.html

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