SEMCO ENERGY Warns of Possible Deceptive Natural Gas Marketing; Customers Advised to Carefully Review Marketing Solicitations

PORT HURON, Mich., Nov. 21, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- SEMCO ENERGY GAS COMPANY is alerting customers of possible deceptive marketing tactics targeting natural gas customers in SEMCO ENERGY service areas.

The Gas Company has received numerous complaints of customers being contacted by people claiming to be marketing natural gas contracts to residential and business customers and implying they are associated with SEMCO ENERGY.

SEMCO ENERGY does not solicit residential or commercial customers for natural gas contracts. Customers are advised to be extremely cautious about any personal information, including natural gas billing information, they provide in telephone or door to door solicitations. If you have questions about being contacted by someone claiming to represent SEMCO ENERGY, please call 1-800-624-2019 or e-mail [email protected]. All SEMCO ENERGY field personnel carry SEMCO ENERGY photo identification.

SEMCO ENERGY customers have the option to buy their natural gas from a third-party provider, however, SEMCO ENERGY does not solicit customers to sign up for the Customer Choice program. The Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) provides a list of all natural gas marketers licensed in Michigan on the MPSC web site: http://michigan.gov/mpsc/0,4639,7-159-16385_17144---,00.html. The site includes information about customer choice and a section showing eligible Customer Choice marketers active in SEMCO ENERGY service areas.

If you would like to lodge a complaint about an alternative supplier or their marketing practices, please contact the Michigan Public Service Commission at 1-800-292-9555.

Information about Customer Choice and alternative gas suppliers, including suggested questions to consider when selecting an alternative supplier, is also available on the SEMCO ENERGY GAS COMPANY web site, www.semcoenergygas.com.  Just click on Customer Communication and Information and select Alternative Gas Supplier Information.

SEMCO ENERGY distributes natural gas to more than 285,000 customers in Michigan, as SEMCO ENERGY GAS COMPANY.

SOURCE SEMCO ENERGY GAS COMPANY