ComEd’s improvements bringing jobs, power and decreased costs to Illinois

As the nation casts about for ways to spur economic development in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, ComEd improvement projects in Illinois are slated to bring more than $2.7 billion to the state, hundreds of new megawatts of capacity and lower costs along the way.

Last year, the company completed infrastructure improvements that enabled 17 new customer projects equivalent to 563 MW of committed capacity. Equivalent to powering more than 160,000 homes, that energy set a one-year record for ComEd. It is also expected to bring nearly 6,4000 jobs to the region and more than $2.7 billion in investment.

This was coupled with an Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) approved request for a $14 million decrease in delivery service charges this year. ComEd said this will help attract further business since — as noted by the Edison Electric Institute — the company’s average commercial rate of 9.90 cents per kilowatt-hour is 8 percent below the national average and 18 percent below the average for the top 10 U.S. metro areas.

“As we look toward economic recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic, we recognize the importance of attracting new businesses, jobs, and investment to the state,” said Diana Sharpe, vice president of Economic and Workforce Development for ComEd. “We’re proud to be a partner to the state in creating conditions – like reliable electricity at affordable and competitive rates – that attract business growth and recruitment. Further, our grid investments are creating the infrastructure required to support new, job-generating industries like data centers and indoor agriculture.”

ComEd began efforts to update its energy system into a smart, digital grid back in 2012. Over the years, the company noted these updates have helped more than 16 million customers avoid outages. It also hopes this reliability will add to the attraction for incoming businesses.

“Reliable electric infrastructure is essential to businesses making location decisions, and ComEd’s sustained performance improvements set Illinois apart from other states and regions,” said Alya Woods, acting CEO and COO of Intersect Illinois, the economic development organization focused on bringing investment and jobs to the state. “Strong utility reliability performance reinforces to businesses that Illinois is the best place for their continued growth.”