advice on electric companies? (Laurens, Five Forks: power lines, rental, co-op)

[Hausfrau1]

My family is moving to Travelers Rest in June. We'll be renting for a while and need to set up an account with a power company soon. Any thoughts on which company might be best? I have heard of Duke, Blue Ridge Co-op, and Laurens Co-op. Thanks in advance!

[lyricamphibian]

You don't actually have a choice. These companies don't compete with one another. Where your home is located determines which company provides electrical service. For instance, my home is in the Five Forks area, so my service is provided by Laurens Electric, and theirs are the only power lines in my neighborhood. I could not switch to, say, Duke Energy, not even if I wanted to. If you have already chosen your first rental, ask which company will be your electric power provider.

[TaterBritches]

You can also look at the electric meter on your prospective rental to see which company's name is on it.

[Hausfrau1]

Thanks for the responses! I guess it will be Duke then, as that is what the landlord/owner of the house uses. I didn't realize that we couldn't shop around. At least it makes for an easy "decision"!

[TaterBritches]

Duke isn't all that bad. They are actually a couple of cents cheaper per kWh right now than the co-op (Laurens Electric). Also, LEC isn't run very transparently for a co-op, so you will probably do about as well as can be expected with Duke instead.