NOPEC electric rates: what you pay, and whether it beats your utility

NOPEC is a group of Ohio communities that buys power together. Its full name is the Northeast Ohio Public Energy Council. NOPEC calls itself a governmental aggregator and counts more than 250 member communities. It buys electricity in bulk from NextEra Energy Services Ohio, LLC, a company owned by NextEra Energy, Inc. The supplier is not NOPEC itself.

Your electric utility does not change. AEP Ohio, CEI or Ohio Edison still delivers the power, fixes outages and sends the bill. NOPEC only sets who sells the power and at what price.

NOPEC says it pays its own costs, such as the opt-out mailings and staff, from fees paid by its supplier. It says it gets no public funds. Those are NOPEC's own statements, and we have not audited them.

NOPEC lists a price for each utility. The standard program is the default for everyone who is enrolled. Two fixed-term programs and a variable program with a built-in discount are also offered. Prices are cents per kWh for the power only. They leave out delivery and taxes. All of them have no early termination fee, says NOPEC.

The monthly variable program is limited and subject to availability, says NOPEC. Its price is always 6% under your utility's price to compare, so it moves when the utility's price moves. The figures shown were the ones in force when we read the page. At AEP Ohio the variable price is the only NOPEC program below the price to compare today.

Often it is, in FirstEnergy areas, and not at AEP Ohio today. The tool shows it for your own kWh. Pick your utility and a NOPEC program, then type your kWh. It shows what NOPEC and your utility's price to compare would cost for the power, and what an offer you type in would cost with its monthly fee.

1. 1
   Pick your utility.

   It is on your bill.

2. 2
   Pick the NOPEC program.

   The standard program is the one you are in unless you picked another.

3. 3
   Type your kWh.

   Use the "kWh used" line on your bill.

4. 4
   Add an offer if you have one.

   Type its price and any monthly fee.

The result puts the costs side by side for a month and a year. It covers the power price only, not delivery or taxes, and it cannot see a price change after a term ends. Nothing you type is sent or saved.

It has risen twice this year. A local news report from WOIO, a Cleveland TV station, said the standard price was 8.999¢ from January to May 2026 and would rise to 9.999¢ at the June meter read. NOPEC's page now shows 10.399¢ for Ohio Edison and CEI from September 2026.

A standard price that "varies with the market" is a variable price. If wholesale prices jump, it can rise. That is why the fixed 12-month price may suit you better. In Ohio Edison and CEI areas it is 10.299¢ against a standard price of 10.399¢. At AEP Ohio it is 10.599¢ against a standard price of 10.499¢. To switch programs, call NOPEC's customer care line at 855-667-3201.

Plenty of fixed offers are priced under NOPEC's standard rate. On October 24, 2026, PUCO's chart listed 145 offers at Ohio Edison, 128 at CEI and 146 at AEP Ohio. The cheapest fixed offer with no fees was 10.09¢ at Ohio Edison, 10.09¢ at CEI and 10.08¢ at AEP Ohio.

Cheapest is not best. Check who the seller is, how long the price lasts and what happens after. Our supplier guide shows how to check a name. NOPEC's strengths are the zero cancel fee and a town-level program that is easy to join and leave. Its rate is not the lowest on the chart.

Send back the opt-out form that came in your enrollment letter. Do nothing and you stay in the program. NOPEC's letters list the standard price, the other programs and how to opt out. After you leave, your next bill carries your utility's price to compare, unless you pick another supplier.

1. Test itUse the tool above with your own kWh and the offer you are weighing.
2. Read the other contractIf you already have a different supplier, check its cancel fee first.
3. Send the opt-out formUse the form from your enrollment letter. NOPEC says there is no fee to leave.
4. Pick a new priceChoose an offer, or stay on your utility's price to compare.

Already with another supplier and want NOPEC's price? Call 855-667-3201. NOPEC will tell you if your community is a member and what the rate is. Our contract ending guide shows what notice a seller owes you and when a cancel fee applies.

About 0.35¢ more per kWh. NOPEC sells the standard and fixed programs "plus 100% renewable content." The extra charge is called a renewable content adder, and NOPEC says it can change. With it, the price is the standard price in the table above plus that 0.35¢. The extra is paid for renewable energy credits that match your use. It does not change the power that reaches your home.

Some towns, such as Cleveland Heights and Lakewood, are in a separate NOPEC Green Community Choice program. Its price is set separately from the standard program, says NOPEC, with an adder of no more than 0.20¢. Check nopec.org for the current figure. Our green plans guide explains what a renewable credit does and does not do.