Major American businesses that have taken advantage of powerderegulation and switched suppliers have benefited from lowerprices, but they also have received less service, performance andvalue, and they’re ready to switch again, according to a survey byRKS Research and Consulting.

The consulting firm, based in North Salem, NY, said deregulationactivity is highest in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states. “Infact, the largest multi-site companies in New York and New Jerseyregister the highest awareness and lowest customer satisfactionscores,” RKS found. Businesses that stayed with their utilitysupplier had the highest satisfaction scores, while those thatswitched are more critical and less satisfied. Many say they planto switch again.

Another interesting fact that turned up in the survey is that”business customers of electric co-operatives and municipalutilities consistently give their suppliers higher performance andvalue scores than firms served by investor-owned utilities.”

Contrary to experience with other products, “energydecision-makers associate high rates with lower quality. Businesscustomers associate high prices with power interruptions, voltagefluctuations, billing problems and inadequate resource planning. Ifenergy costs rise again this summer, this gap may increase,”according to the RKS analysis.

RKS said it came up with the results in interviews late lastyear with more than 800 medium-to-large businesses, with annualrevenues in excess of $2 million. Other interviewees included 400key accounts-organizations with multiple locations, annual revenuesin excess of $10 million and more than 1,000 employees.

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