TXU offers free electricity at night

Dallas-based retail electricity provider TXU Energy announced early this month that it plans to give its customers a chance to use electricity for free, so long as they use it at the right times.

The new TXU Energy Free Nights 24 plan offers customers a fixed electricity rate over the course of two years, helping to keep electricity bills stable from month to month.

At the same time, though, customers will get to make use of their new smart meters by not paying for any of the power they use at night, when demand is generally low. TXU estimates that customers could save more than $200 each year on their electricity bills.

“We all learned a lot from last summer’s record heat, when the daytime temperatures were scorching,” Michael Grasso, chief marketing officer at TXU Energy, said in a statement. “Our customers who shift and save with TXU Energy Free Nights 24 can generate cost savings for themselves and support the greater good by removing demand from the Texas power grid during peak consumption hours.”

TXU notes that the three-month outlook for Texas is projecting higher-than-usual temperatures, which could mean very high electricity use during the day.