TUCSON, Ariz. — Thousands of Arizonan’s have signed up for an account that promises to support renewable energy and make your power bill cleaner. Tucson Electric Power wants you to know they are not affiliated with the company and cannot support their claims.
Arcadia power is based out of D.C. A line on their website says “When you pay your bill through Arcadia Power, you’re still getting your energy – it’s just cleaner.
“We know where our power comes from, but we can't speak for them,” said TEP spokesperson Joseph Barrios.
Barrios says TEP is not affiliated with the company and can't support their claims.
He says handing over your bill paying process to them doesn't mean your power comes from a different source.
“They should know that when they flip the switch and the lights turn on that is Tucson Electric Power. We are still providing their electric service, and if they have questions about their bill they should give us a call.”
9 on Your Side called the company and they sent us this statement:
Official Arcadia Power statement
Arcadia Power does not call customers or engage in telemarketing.
The Arcadia Power platform manages a members utility bill to connect them to clean energy. In Arizona, anyone who pays a power bill can sign up. From there, our platform will make sure their power bill is paid on time every month while we match 50% of their monthly energy usage with renewable energy certificates (RECs) from U.S. wind farms on their behalf, at no additional cost. Members can also choose to match 100% of their energy usage with wind energy credits for a small monthly fee. We have an active sign-up process, our members choose to have us manage their utility bills so we can connect to wind energy and Arcadia Power members still have access to their TEP utility bill.
Our mission is to make clean energy an easy choice, for everyone.
“Renewable energy certificates can be bought and sold, they can be traded so there is a market for them,” said Barrios.
An Arcadia Power spokesperson admitted there is no cost benefit for signing up in Arizona, but said people sign up because the company promises to add clean energy into the power grid.
“If customers are interested in signing up for programs supporting wind and solar we do have programs available to them,” said Barrios.
Barrios recommends people always do their homework before purchasing any product or service.
