By Carol Tucker
Hard work by LADWP employees and significant budget investments in expanding energy efficiency programs paid off recently, as LADWP made the top 10 and tied for the biggest point gain among 52 large U.S. utilities surveyed in the 2020 Utility Energy Efficiency Scorecard.
During a recent Board of Water and Power Commissioners meeting, Martin L. Adams, General Manager and Chief Engineer, congratulated and recognized about 50 employees from Customer Service and Efficiency Solutions for their achievement in expanding and implementing LADWP’s energy efficiency customer-focused programs.
“This is a tremendous achievement for LADWP, and would not have been possible without consistent dedication from everyone working to help our customers be more energy efficient in their homes, businesses, and institutions,” Adams said.
LADWP increased energy savings 54 percent from 2015 to 2018 and investments in energy efficiency more than 50 percent during that timeframe, distinguishing itself as one of two “most improved” utilities by the 2020 Scorecard, along with Consumers Energy.
LADWP achieved over 1.5 percent megawatt-hour (MWh) savings as a percentage of total energy sales, and increased its investment from $78.6 million to $135.2 million in 2018, representing 3.2 percent of energy sales. LADWP also achieved the third highest energy savings per low-income customers.
Released February 20, 2020 by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), the Scorecard ranking reflects LADWP’s increased investments in Energy Efficiency programs, as well as the expansion of our portfolio of program offerings and comprehensiveness. The Scorecard noted that LADWP had improved significantly in offering more programs using emerging technologies LADWP programs also have improved in targeting a more diverse range of customers and end uses.
Over the past few years, LADWP has significantly boosted its budget for energy efficiency as a key strategy to meet California’s greenhouse gas reduction legislation and the goals of the Mayor’s 2015, 2017 and 2019 Sustainable City pLAns. The 2019 pLAn, known as the Green New Deal, calls for achieving a 100 percent renewable energy supply by 2045.
The 2020 Utility Energy Efficiency Scorecard ranks utilities on 20 metrics based on their 2018 performance, policies, and programs, allocating 50 possible points.
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