Customer Service
Utilities face several challenges as they address an increasing number of outages. As customers grapple with these rising power interruptions, 65% report that they’re frustrated with utilities’ impersonal communications. However, utilities can now address this communications challenge by taking advantage of AI. Rather than simply reacting to outages as they happen, power providers can embrace intelligent, customized, and proactive messaging that humanizes these crises for their customers.
Bills and Rates
Staff for the Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families (ACF) will not be available to provide programmatic support for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) and new LIHEAP grants will not be made during a government shutdown, according to recently released guidance released by the ACF.
Electric Vehicles
The Electric Power Research Institute recently launched GridFAST™ -- a central online portal that modernizes and simplifies the way fleet operators and charging providers interact with the United States' 3,200 utilities, it said on Sept. 30.
Distributed Energy Resources
The City of Longmont, Colorado, has launched a new community solar program, Iluminar Community Solar, powered by solar panels at the Longmont Waste Services building.
Electricity Markets
Dawson Public Power District’s board voted unanimously to sign a new wholesale power contract at its October meeting, the Nebraska public power utility said on Oct. 6.
Distributed Energy Resources
Avangrid recently announced the signing of a power purchase agreement with Amazon for energy from a new solar project called Oregon Trail Solar.
Generation
Entergy Arkansas recently announced it will power Google’s planned $4 billion technology investment in Arkansas. Google’s investment will focus on cloud and artificial intelligence infrastructure, including the development of a new data center in West Memphis, Arkansas – the company’s first facility in the state.
Energy Storage
Xcel Energy recently said it is making a first-of-its-kind proposal to build out a battery storage network across Minnesota.
Energy Storage
Texas public power utility Denton Municipal Electric in early October announced a new power purchase agreement with Jupiter Power, LLC for 100 megawatts of battery storage capacity through the Tidwell Power II project located in central Texas. The agreement, which was approved by the Denton, Texas
Environment
In an important step forward for water management in California, Governor Gavin Newsom has signed Senate Bill 72, which will update the California Water Plan and set long-term water supply targets.