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As your local, not-for-profit electricity provider, we want to start 2026 with transparency about what's ahead for your energy bills. We know electricity costs are high and that bills are hard to decode. We hope this information will help clarify all the different messages out there.
January 2026: Lower generation rates, higher delivery rates.
In 2026, Ava is lowering electricity generation rates by about 20% for Bright Choice customers and 15% for Renewable 100 customers compared to 2025 rates. For the average residential customer, these new generation rates are 2-3 cents per kWh cheaper than they were last year, or about $10 less per month for generation.
Bright Choice is currently priced 0.5% below PG&E's generation rates, and Renewable 100 costs 1¾ cents per kWh more than PG&E. We’ve maintained a discount on Bright Choice ever since starting service in 2018, and Ava customers have saved over $180 million on their electricity bills.
At the same time, PG&E increased its transmission and distribution rates, which make up the majority of your total electricity costs. Ava's generation rate decrease helps offset these increases.
March 2026: PG&E is implementing the Base Services Charge.
Starting in March, PG&E will introduce the Base Services Charge, as part of their delivery services: a fixed monthly fee of about $24 for most customers, or less for income-qualified customers. According to PG&E, this isn't a new charge, but a restructuring of existing costs.
The impact of this change on your bill will vary: higher usage customers might pay less overall, but lower usage customers may end up paying more. You have likely received some information directly from PG&E about this change.
If you want more detail, we've created these resources to explain how Ava’s rates and PG&E’s rates impact you:
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