April 18
CPS Energy Adds 159.2 MW of Wind Energy
Top consumer smart energy news hand-selected and brought to you by the Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative.
Member News
Texas public power utility CPS Energy has expanded its existing Power Purchase Agreement with Avangrid by adding an additional 159.2 megawatts of wind energy from the Peñascal wind farm in Kenedy County, Texas. As a result of this expanded agreement, the utility’s power capacity from Avangrid will nearly double, rising from 160.8 MW to 320 MW.
As utilities explore new ways to serve current and long-term demand growth from transportation electrification, robust AI-powered analytics offer ways to develop necessary and holistic EV management programs. The benefits of these new tools can help justify the investment as both utilities and regulators look to manage both charging and costs to customers.
The U.S. energy sector faces unprecedented challenges in meeting rising demand driven by increased and energy-hungry AI and data center deployments, electrification and supply chain efforts. Resolving these challenges will require innovative deployments of demand flexibility initiatives and an enormous investment of capital.
ComEd received the Policy Power Player Award from the Smart Electric Power Alliance (SEPA). The award was bestowed upon ComEd at the prestigious 2025 SEPA Power Player Awards in San Diego. The Policy Power Player Award highlights ComEd’s exceptional leadership in promoting clean energy solutions and fostering partnerships that benefit communities and the environment.
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Industry News
For the first time, fossil fuels accounted for less than half of U.S. electricity production across an entire month as clean power generation surged in March. Last month, fossil gas and coal made up just over 49 percent of power generation, while solar, wind, hydropower, biofuels and other renewables, and nuclear met 51 percent of demand, new data from think tank Ember shows.
Florida public power utility OUC recently celebrated the grand opening of the largest solar energy center in its history. The 149 MW project, located east of St. Cloud, Florida, on two separate 600-plus-acre sites, will more than double OUC’s existing solar capacity. The addition of Harmony II and Storey Bend Solar Energy Centers brings the total capacity of OUC’s solar energy portfolio to 271.5 MW.
Electric vehicle registrations in Chicago are steadily climbing. A new plan the Chicago Department of Transportation shared last week aims to build the infrastructure the city needs to keep up with the growth, reduce transportation-related emissions and make EV access more equitable. The Chicago Moves Electric Framework is the city’s first such plan.
Nearly three million Massachusetts households will have the chance to start saving money on heating next winter under new seasonal heat-pump rates from the state’s three major electric utilities. Regulators have approved plans from Unitil and National Grid to reduce electricity rates for heat pump owners during the region’s often-frigid winter months, and Eversource is preparing its own proposal.
