June 20
Austin Energy Details Work to Prepare for Summer Power Demand
Top consumer smart energy news hand-selected and brought to you by the Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative.
Member News
Austin Energy’s power generation and transmission facilities have completed their weatherization readiness activities in preparation for the coming heat this summer. The utility conducted planned maintenance on its generation units throughout the spring to support reliable power plant and transmission operations during the summer. Austin Energy certified its summer weather preparedness to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas in compliance with state regulations.
Xcel Energy has appointed Ryan Long as the company’s executive vice president and chief legal and compliance officer, effective immediately. Long, currently president of Xcel Energy – Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota, will take over the role of Rob Berntsen, who accepted a position outside the company. Long will oversee Xcel Energy’s legal, compliance and federal affairs teams.
When the Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative (SECC) launched its Smart Energy Snapshot Series with the “Alleviating Americans’ Energy Burdens” survey in June 2023, American households were dealing with high energy costs as the economy recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic. That survey found that a quarter of all Americans had struggled to pay their electric bills in the past year and that most consumers were unaware of programs that could lower their energy costs.
Consumers Energy reported that its underground power line pilot program is a success, with initial data showing that areas included in the nine-mile pilot experienced fewer outages and improved overall system reliability compared to overhead-line service areas. So far this year, Consumer Energy reports a 100-percent reduction in storm-related outages to underground pilot areas compared to surrounding neighborhoods with overhead systems.
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Industry News
Sales are still growing, but policy changes in the United States are significantly slowing the country’s adoption of electric vehicles, BloombergNEF said Wednesday in its annual global outlook for the sector. This “is the first year where we have reduced both our near-term and long-term passenger EV adoption outlook,” BNEF said in its 2025 Electric Vehicles Outlook.
Demand for gas is skyrocketing. In an era of new load growth caused by electrification, the onshoring of manufacturing, and a boom in data centers for artificial intelligence, gas has become the “first-choice technology to fill the impending gap,” the think tank RMI found in a new report. For the rest of the decade, utilities and independent power providers are projected to double the recent rate of construction.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said his state is launching the Customer Relief Fund to help consumers with utility bills in the midst of nationwide energy cost increases. In collaboration with utility providers and nonprofit partners, the state will provide $19 million in relief for limited- and middle-income ratepayers to help with energy bills. The funds for the program have been donated by Exelon and will be administered through local nonprofit partners.
There were 30 weather-related events in the United States and Canada that caused more than $1 billion in damages last year, but “none resulted in operator-initiated load shed, unlike previous events of a similar scale,” the North American Electric Reliability Corp. said Thursday in its annual State of Reliability report. On whole, the bulk power system “remained reliable but challenged by adverse weather conditions and transitions in resource mix and usage,” according to the report.
