Consumers Energy Named a ‘Customer Champion’ Among Nation’s Electric, Natural Gas Providers

Company Fifth in U.S., Strengthening Bond with Residential Customers

WASHINGTON D.C. – December 15, 2015 – (RealEstateRama) — An independent national survey has ranked Consumers Energy fifth in the nation among providers of electricity and natural gas and a “Customer Champion” for strengthening its bond with residential customers.

“We are focused on delivering an exceptional experience to the 6.6 million Michigan residents who count on us for electricity and natural gas every day,” said Garrick Rochow, Consumers Energy’s vice president and chief customer officer. “We feel honored that our customers are telling us we are doing well, and we will strive to do even better as we look to the future.”

The new survey results were released last week by Cogent Reports, a division of Market Strategies International. This is the second year where Consumers Energy ranked high in customer satisfaction. Earlier this year, Cogent Reports also identified Consumers Energy as an “environmental champion” among Midwest energy providers.

Consumers Energy has taken several actions this year to continue delivering energy more affordably, reliably and sustainably:

Planning for the future – Consumers Energy this month completed the $155 million purchase of a new clean-burning gas-fired plant in its hometown of Jackson. The Jackson plant, purchased for about a quarter of the cost of building a new plant, will help partially replace the power from seven coal-fired plants across the state that will close by mid-April 2016. Consumers Energy opened its Cross Winds Energy Park, its second wind farm, in Michigan’s Thumb in late 2014, and company officials announced plans to buy electricity from a new wind farm that will open by the end of 2016. A new community solar program, Solar Gardens, also started enrolling participants.

Delivering energy reliably – The energy provider made nearly $200 million in upgrades to strengthen its natural gas system, and improved electric reliability by upgrading electric poles and continuing its work to clear trees away from electric lines across Michigan. The result is a safer, more reliable system to provide energy to Michigan homes and businesses.

New bill, alerts for customers – Consumers Energy this summer streamlined the bills that it mails and emails to some 3 million customers each month, providing more and easier-to-understand information. Customers also now can sign up to receive alerts via text when their next bill is due, or when they lose power.

“Our Promise to Michigan is to deliver the energy you need, whenever you need it. As we approach our 130th anniversary as a company next year, we are proud to continue taking steps to better serve communities across our state,” Rochow said.

Consumers Energy, Michigan’s largest utility, is the principal subsidiary of CMS Energy (NYSE: CMS), providing natural gas and electricity to 6.6 million of the state’s 10 million residents in all 68 Lower Peninsula counties.

Media toolkit
SURVEY RESULTS: See Cogent Reports’ 2015 Utility Trusted Brand and Customer Engagement Residential Survey: http://landing.marketstrategies.com/utility-trusted-brand-engagement-residential

Media Contacts: Brian Wheeler, 517-788-2394, or Dan Bishop, 517-788-2395
For more information about Consumers Energy, go to www.ConsumersEnergy.com.