In an opinion piece for The CT Mirror, United's Kat Burnham highlights Connecticut's escalating home heating affordability crisis, pointing to the natural gas sector's aging infrastructure and declining demand. She advocates for proactive measures to align gas utility spending with the state's energy goals, such as implementing clean heat plans, exploring non-pipeline alternatives, and adopting regulatory reforms.
Topics: United In The News, Energy Efficiency, Kat Burnham, Connecticut
Legislation will establish the Texas Energy Waste Advisory Committee
AUSTIN, TX – Today, HB 5323 passed the Texas Legislature. This forward-thinking legislation establishes the Texas Energy Waste Advisory Committee, composed of leaders from key state agencies, including the Public Utility Commission, ERCOT, and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, to coordinate efforts aimed at reducing energy waste, improving efficiency, and enhancing grid reliability.
Topics: Press Releases, Texas, Energy Efficiency
The Nevada Current reports that NV Energy is seeking to make demand pricing charges mandatory for all customers, potentially adding between $20 to $38 to the average monthly bill for Southern Nevada residents. United's Sheila Hallstrom pointed out that this plan could actually penalize and increase costs for customers that have already taken advantage of independent energy solutions.
Topics: United In The News, Energy Efficiency, Nevada
PUCT vote marks major step toward a more modern, reliable, and efficient grid
AUSTIN, TX – The Texas Advanced Energy Business Alliance (TAEBA) applauds the Public Utility Commission of Texas’ (PUCT) historic vote to build the state’s first-ever 765-kilovolt (kV) high voltage transmission lines—ushering in a new era of grid modernization for the Lone Star State.
Topics: Press Releases, Texas, Energy Efficiency
Advanced Energy United applauds the Illinois House for passing House Bill 3650 to help homeowners, renters, and building owners lower their energy bills and make improvements to their properties.
Illinoisans will benefit greatly from the bill, which would create a State Navigator Program to link them with already-available programs that could lower the cost of their utility bills or reduce the price of making energy efficiency improvements to their properties.
Topics: Utility, Press Releases, Energy Efficiency, Illinois, Samarth Medakkar
In an op-ed for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, United's Emma Heins outlines how advanced energy resources provide efficient, reliable and low-cost alternatives to expensive fossil fuel generation. She further emphasizes that state leaders and utilities need to leverage clean energy solutions in order to keep energy costs affordable for residents and businesses looking to expand in Wisconsin.
Topics: United In The News, Energy Efficiency, Wisconsin, Emma Heins
Senate Bill 2455 would address the need for a more reliable, efficient electric grid
AUSTIN, TX – Texas is at a critical turning point, facing the challenge of balancing rising energy demand with the need for a more reliable and efficient electric grid. Although the state leads the nation in energy generation, we are encountering growing challenges in maintaining grid reliability amid unprecedented load growth.
Topics: Press Releases, Texas, Energy Efficiency, Matthew Boms
Organizations classify cuts to SGIP, SOMAH, and CalSHAPE as short-sighted decision that would exacerbate costs
SACRAMENTO, CA – California decision-makers are considering cuts to key energy programs that benefit school children, low-income communities, and California ratepayers. In response, a coalition of more than 25 clean energy, environmental, education, and affordable housing organizations submitted a letter calling on state leaders to reject potential cuts to the California Schools Healthy Air, Plumbing, and Efficiency (CalSHAPE) program, the Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP), and the Solar on Multifamily Affordable Housing (SOMAH) program.
Topics: State Policy, Press Releases, Energy Efficiency, California
The New York Times reports on a recent boom in electricity demand in the U.S. that is putting pressure on conventional gas power plants, quoting United's CEO and President Heather O'Neill on the variety of options available for utilities to meet rising demand.
Critics say that regulated utilities often default to building gas plants because it’s a familiar technology and because, in many states, they earn a guaranteed profit from capital projects. They don’t always have the same incentive to adopt energy-efficiency programs that reduce sales or to plan transmission lines that can import cheaper wind power from elsewhere.
Topics: United In The News, Energy Efficiency, New York, Heather O'Neill
In business, the only constant is disruption and change. We’ve seen this truth manifest across all industries, from telecommunications to retail to computing and manufacturing. The energy industry is no exception. Both gas and electric energy systems are becoming increasingly complex, with more dynamic supply and demand-side market forces instigating a profound evolution in how our power is sourced, priced and delivered. Change has come quicker to the electric side, but recently we have begun to see how the gas delivery system used to heat and cool homes and businesses is primed for change, and it should challenge the business-as-usual strategies currently used to regulate these essential services for ratepayers across the country.
Topics: United In The News, Energy Efficiency, Building Decarbonization