June 2
Smart Tech to Help Duke Avoid Outages, Speed Restorations
Top consumer smart energy news hand-selected and brought to you by the Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative.
Member News
As hurricane season approaches, Duke Energy in Florida is reminding customers that its smart, self-healing technology will help avoid power outages and speed up restorations after a storm hits. More than 60 percent of Duke’s Florida customers are served by self-healing capabilities, the company said. The company aims to increase that to 80 percent over the next few years.
When we updated our consumer segmentation framework last summer, we focused primarily on two areas – interest in home electricity usage and comfort with and use of technology – as a means to assess potential consumer engagement in utility programs and services. This analysis resulted in five consumer segments, ranging from the Green Pioneers, the “sweet spot” for innovative utility offerings, to the Comfort Seekers, who are primarily interested in their personal comfort.
California community choice aggregator Peninsula Clean Energy has reached a 15-year deal to receive 45 megawatts of battery storage. Peninsula Clean Energy will receive all capacity attributes from a four-hour lithium-ion battery storage project that Terra-Gen will develop near Barstow in San Bernardino County. The facility is expected to be operational in June 2024.
As a follow-up to its energy efficiency program, ComEd filed a request with the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) last week in search of a $119 million increase to ICC-approved rates from January, all for further efficiency investment. Since 2008, the company credited the energy efficiency program with saving customers more than $7.6 billion, including $176 million in electric bills last year.
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Industry News
While consumers say updates are needed for public fast-charging infrastructure, the vast majority of current EV drivers are still likely to buy an EV as their next vehicle, according to a new survey by the nonprofit Plug In America. According to the recent results, 90 percent of EV owners are likely or very likely to purchase an EV for their next vehicle.
As the global transition away from fossil fuels accelerates, the gap between investment in clean energy technologies and fossil fuels continues to grow. This year, the world is projected to invest around $1.7 trillion in clean energy, according to International Energy Agency data released last week – substantially more than the just over $1 trillion expected to pour into fossil fuels.
Wind turbine manufacturers received a record 23.5 GW of orders during the first quarter of 2023 representing a 27 percent year-over-year increase, according to data from Wood Mackenzie. Order activity increased in China, Latin America and the U.S., which saw orders jump to 1.8 GW from 0.8 GW this time last year, according to research and consulting firm Wood Mackenzie.
Hawaiian Electric is testing out a new means of incentivization for EV drivers alongside ev.energy with the launch of the Smart Charge Hawaii program. This pilot offers a chance for customers of Hawaiian Electric to enroll to receive either $150 in cash or 10,000 HawaiianMiles from Hawaiian Airlines’ frequent flyer program.
