For Immediate Release
Contact
Candice Womer
The company's request also seeks recovery for enhancements made to support sustainable energy through electric vehicle offerings, smart meter upgrades and grid strengthening against severe storms with a focus on customer affordability.
MAYS LANDING, N.J. (February 15, 2023) — Atlantic City Electric is requesting the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities' (NJBPU) approval to update electric delivery rates to reflect the company's efforts to further strengthen the local energy grid against more frequent and severe storms, meet evolving customer expectations for service reliability and execute projects that enhance service and deliver safe, reliable and sustainable energy for customers. The company works every day to further modernize the local energy grid and deliver the safe and reliable service that customers expect, meeting the evolving needs of the hybrid work environment, the expanding transition to electric vehicles and the growing energy needs of local communities.
The company's investments in the local energy grid, deployment of new technologies and support from energy efficiency programs have helped Atlantic City Electric customers reduce their energy usage and better manage their energy costs. Because of sustained efforts to modernize the energy grid, Atlantic City Electric customers experienced the most reliable energy service ever in 2022, with the lowest frequency of electric outages on record. Ongoing investments in the local energy grid have reduced the frequency of electric outages by more than 75 percent since 2012.
"Customers are relying on us to deliver a world-class customer experience with safe, affordable and reliable energy while balancing the need for continued modernization of the local energy grid," said Doug Mokoid, Atlantic City Electric region president. "It is important for us to continue delivering the quality service our customers count on while advancing new and cleaner energy experiences, like our EVsmart program and the benefits our customers will see with their new smart meters."
As part of this request, Atlantic City Electric is seeking to recover $104.8 million for money spent making the local energy grid smarter, stronger and cleaner, enhancing service and delivering safe, reliable and sustainable energy for customers through key programs, including the company's Smart Energy Network and EVsmart electric vehicle programs. With climate change causing increasingly damaging storms, this request also includes recovery of the money spent on storm restoration after those storms impacted the electric grid and our customers. If approved, the typical residential customer using 669 kilowatt hours per month would see a monthly bill increase of 8.80 percent or about $12.22.
Atlantic City Electric understands customers are still facing economic challenges while recovering from the pandemic and are dealing with the very real negative impacts of high costs for many family necessities. The company remains committed to working with customers to keep them connected with payment arrangements and helping them secure important energy assistance. The company also continues to encourage customers to take advantage of the tens of millions of dollars that remain available through programs such as the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). Customers can visit atlanticcityelectric.com/EnergyAssistance or call 1-800-642-3780 to learn about additional energy assistance programs.
Atlantic City Electric's EVsmart program is supporting customers' transition to cleaner, more efficient transportation with nearly 600 customer applications and rebates for charging infrastructure at homes and businesses across South Jersey. These EVsmart programs include; public charging, residential EV charging programs, multifamily building EV charger, workplace and fleet EV charger rebates and EV fast charging station rates. Customers can learn more at atlanticcityelectric.com/EVsmart.
The Smart Energy Network program is driving the installation of approximately 568,000 smart meters across South Jersey and is a critical step in advancing a clean energy future. Upgraded smart meters will provide numerous benefits for customers such as faster and more efficient power restoration efforts, more detailed outage information when outages occur, and new tools that can help customers use energy more efficiently and save money. The initiative is also helping drive the South Jersey economy by supporting local and diverse companies with more than $27 million going to South Jersey area businesses who are supporting the smart meter installation. Learn more at atlanticcityelectric.com/SEN.
Reliability projects are also important to the local economy and play a key role in Atlantic City Electric's efforts to be a partner in South Jersey's sustained economic development. Investments in energy infrastructure improve service for customers while also driving economic development and job creation in the local economy. Atlantic City Electric's broader economic and community impact is felt across southern New Jersey and includes:
To learn more about Atlantic City Electric, visit The Source, Atlantic City Electric's online newsroom. Find additional information by visiting atlanticcityelectric.com, on Facebook at facebook.com/AtlanticCityElectric, and on Twitter at twitter.com/AcEleCconnect. Atlantic City Electric's mobile app is available at www.atlanticcityelectric.com/mobileapp.