Ameren rate to fall but remain high
Ameren Illinois’ electricity supply rate is falling but remains significantly higher than last year, prompting warnings from the Citizens Utility Board about customer costs. The group is urging lawmakers to advance the Illinois POWER Act, which would require data centers seeking uninterrupted service to provide new clean power and help prevent data center demand from increasing costs for other customers.
Ameren Illinois’ electricity supply rate will decline Thursday to 10.441 cents per kilowatt-hour for the first 800 kilowatt-hours and 8.262 cents for additional usage. The Citizens Utility Board said the rate remains 24% higher than the comparable October 2025 rate and warned customers about unfavorable offers from alternative suppliers.
The consumer group also called on Ameren to assist customers struggling with higher bills and urged the Illinois General Assembly to pass the POWER Act. The proposed legislation would require data centers to provide their own new clean power if they want electric service that cannot be curtailed during periods of high demand, with the goal of limiting the effect of data center-related energy demand on other customers.