Payment Created by Climate and Equitable Jobs Act to Protect Customers
ComEd today announced that over $803 million will be returned to customers under the framework established in Illinois' Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA) enacted in 2021, which requires nuclear plants to pay customers when prices are high. ComEd residential and commercial customers can expect to benefit from these funds in the form of bill credits, with the average residential customer expected to receive approximately $13 a month, depending on usage, over the first five months of the year.
The funds are being returned as part of the CEJA's Carbon Mitigation Credit (CMC) program that provided price support to select Illinois nuclear units that were scheduled to be closed. Importantly, that statute protected ComEd customers from over-paying in the event that federal policymakers also stepped up to support nuclear generation.
The 2021 CEJA law created the CMC program to support carbon-free nuclear generation facilities and in return, provide an adjustment to ComEd customers if energy prices exceed the agreed-upon price determined in CEJA. The CMC program is in effect for five years, through 2027, and can result in a credit or a charge depending on energy prices.
"ComEd will always advocate on behalf of our customers, and we are encouraged to see significant savings being passed through to them as a result of Illinois' leadership in clean energy policy," said Gil Quiniones, president and CEO of ComEd. "Thanks to the foresight and leadership of Governor Pritzker and the Illinois General Assembly, CEJA puts our customers on a path to a cleaner future while upholding our commitment to ensuring sustainability and affordability."
The savings from the $803 million in credits reported on the nuclear generators' tax returns will automatically reduce what customers pay, and no action is required by customers to receive the credit.
While future prices cannot be forecast with certainty, the CMC program is expected to continue providing credits, based on market prices, for at least another year, helping to offset supply cost increases and support families during periods of economic uncertainty.
ComEd is a unit of Chicago-based Exelon Corporation (NASDAQ:EXC), a Fortune 200 company and one of the nation's largest utility companies, serving more than 10.7 million electricity and natural gas customers. ComEd powers the lives of more than 4 million customers across northern Illinois, or 70 percent of the state's population. For more information, visit ComEd.com, and connect with the company on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, X and YouTube.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251203782200/en/
ComEd Media Relations
312-394-3500