April 2025
Member Spotlight
In 2025, we will recognize one member each month, providing an organizational profile and highlighting the member's accomplishments in the smart energy space.
About Fayetteville Public Works Commission
The Fayetteville Public Works Commission operates the largest municipal electric system in North Carolina and the 38th largest in the nation. PWC delivers safe, reliable and affordable electricity, water and wastewater services to their customers that reside in Fayetteville and many surrounding areas in Cumberland County, North Carolina.
Customer Intelligence Platform
PWC has partnered with BlastPoint to leverage the company’s Customer Intelligence Platform to deliver personalized and relevant information to the right customers, through the right channels, with the right messaging at the right times. This versatile tool has led PWC to gain a deeper, more holistic understanding of their customers at the household and business level for planning and targeting purposes.
Through the Intelligence Platform, PWC has been able to track and drive key customer metrics such as overall customer health scores and initiative-specific KPIs and optimize marketing and operational resources. Using BlastPoint’s intelligence modules PWC has been able to design more impactful energy efficiency programs, taking PWC’s customer programs to the next level.
Personalized Outbound Communications
As part of PWC’s commitment to customer engagement, PWC has launched several communication initiatives and added online energy tools aimed at supporting a more customer centric experience. Partnering with Brillion (formerly known as Apogee), PWC implemented the company’s Envoy Platform. Through the Envoy Platform, PWC has implemented the following outbound communications and online energy tools:
- Personalized Video Messaging – Electric customers receive timely, relevant videos that offer bill explanations, or notifications, and can include the impact of water and sewer.
- Energy Summary Videos – Customers receive personal reports delivered seasonally or annually by email.
- Public Service Announcement Videos – Storm warnings, Pre-Heating and Pre-Cooling, Beat the Peak.
On the horizon, PWC will be implementing the next communication enhancement, Energy Alerts. Energy Alerts will be designed to send customers notifications sent via email showing the current electric bill for that billing period.
Community Solar/Battery Storage
In 2019, PWC built North Carolina’s first municipal Community Solar/Battery Storage Project, which is located adjacent to the plant. The solar project can generate up to 1 MW of energy, and BWGP controls the charging and discharging of the stored energy/battery based on likelihood of DEP system peak. The battery project is saving PWC and customers over $100,000 annually and the solar panels save over $40,000 annually.
In 2021, PWC installed additional battery storage capacity. The battery systems can now generate 2 MW per hour over the four-hour peak demand periods in the summer and winter to offset the peak demand. This capability can lead to savings of $480,000 annually.
