Xcel Energy customers can now specify their preference for wind and solar energy by signing up for “Renewable Connect.” Xcel’s Kevin Schwain says there’s a fee for choosing renewable energy — about five percent more currently — but customers also receive a credit on the fuel charge for conventional energy sources

 

Schwain says customers can specify renewables on a month-to-month basis — but he says commercial users in particular should consider the option to lock in their energy price for five or ten years.  He says with instability in prices of fuel that conventional power plants use, the lock-in option might make sense in the long run.