Electric companies in Texas make up one of the most successful competitive, commercial energy markets in the United States. Texas has over 40 Retail Electric Providers with more providers entering the market everyday. Only the smart and financially savy companies stay around for any length of time. Spark Energy would be a success story of a new electric company working their way to the top. When Texas energy suppliers compete in Texas they all have to start with their Risk Management strategy. This is the strategy the energy traders use at the trading desk. A big part of what energy traders do is buy off the Natural Gas futures market. They then hedge that energy as insurance against a large increase in price.
A few electricity providers offer some alternative ways for low or no credit. Texas energy consumers to have their electric service turned on without having to fork over the equivalent of 1 months rent for many of these Texas electricity customers. You will hear three different options when it comes to low or no deposit electric service. These options are post paid, no deposit guaranteed, and prepaid electricity service. The post paid energy service is what most people have. You simply are billed for the electricity service you used the previous month and you pay that amount. The problem is if you have bad credit most electricity companies in Texas are going to want a deposit.
The interesting thing is they often have their hands tied as to be able to price below a competitive electricity price because their policy does not allow them to go below a certain price. This is a questionable call but as long as the electric company has a strong brand name they will be carried by their brand name during the times they are not as competitive as the next provider.