Direct Energy

Getting Energy Direct

With over six million customers, Direct Energy is one of the largest electricity providers in North America. The company functions mostly as a middleman, buying energy wholesale from producers and subsequently selling it to utilities which deliver the final product. The company also makes some of its profits through energy storage and investment in the energy futures market.

Residential Electricity

Direct Energy supplies homes with electricity and natural gas. In many (deregulated) regions, you can purchase these products directly from Direct Energy even if though they’ll still be delivered by your local utility company. In some regions, the company offers only a one plan for electricity or natural gas. In competitive markets, such as Texas, they offer a range of options. These include the Pure Texas Wind Plan, which is the company’s primary green electricity plan.

Consumers can sign up for these plans with various degrees of commitment. Direct Energy offers one option with no commitment at all—customers simply pay from month to month and leave whenever they choose. There are also contracts with lengths of up to two years. If you’re choosing a new electricity company, you’ll want to consider the intersection of these factors when deciding what contract is best for you.

You can also choose between variable- and fixed-rate pricing. Generally, taking on greater risk (variable rate) and longer commitment will decrease the price of your gas or electricity.

Commercial Electricity

Direct Energy provides electricity to many businesses, ranging from  small businesses to national-scale companies. A sufficiently large company can obtain a National Account, which entitles them to special service and pricing. Smaller businesses can choose from a range of existing options:

• PowerLock is a fixed-rate plan; electricity costs the same amount (per kilowatt hour) each month.
• PowerIndex is a variable plan in which the customer’s costs vary according to a predetermined market index.
• PowerFlex is a mixed plan that combines fixed and variable pricing. 50% of the cost of electricity is set in advance and 50 percent is based off of a spot market index. This option allows a business to hedge its bets halfway between volatility and stability.
• PowerPortfolio, available only to larger commercial customers, involves negotiating a customized mix of fixed and variable pricing.

Direct Energy also sells commercial natural gas via a similar set of plans.

About the Company

Direct Energy is the largest energy retailer in North America, and one of the largest energy companies overall. It operates in 10 Canadian provinces and 46 U.S. states and is wholly owned by a larger company called Centrica plc.

Direct Energy produces much of its electricity in a traditional way, but it is also affiliated with five wind farms in Texas, which together have a capacity of 813 megawatts. It also offers geothermal power to individual buildings in some areas.

We at ElectricityRates.com try to keep you updated with the best news and information on the electricity companies in your area. If you want, though, you can always check the company website to see if they’ve beat us to the punch.