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Powering On: Four Factors to Energize a Corporate Renewable Energy Program

 September 17, 2018

Corporate Renewable Energy Program

The private sector is increasingly turning to renewable energy to achieve corporate sustainability goals . In order to accomplish this successfully, these companies depend on a clear corporate renewable energy program. A corporate renewable energy program is an implementation and management framework to help companies integrate renewable energy into their business operations. An effective program will include a clear goal (e.g., 100% renewable energy sourcing), a defined procurement strategy (e.g., renewable energy certificates (RECs), power purchase agreements (PPAs), etc.), and an iterative underlying process for ongoing management.


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Considering a Phased Approach to Implementing Shared Services?

 August 7, 2018

Has your organization decided to move to a shared services model? More than likely, you are already preparing for the massive changes ahead as you transform your service delivery model. Any change of this scale should be managed with care, as it can be hard on the customers you are serving as well as your staff. In many cases, it is wise to transition to a new service model using a phased approach, which will help to manage the change over time.


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Changing Customer Experience

 August 7, 2018

In recent years, individuals visiting customer service websites have been provided the option to engage in an online chat session, via an instant messaging service, with a contact center associate. Customers are also able to contact customer support without having to go to a website. According to IBM,[1] 70% of consumers say they prefer messaging over calling for customer support. Chat technologies, including live chat and chatbots, provide an opportunity for shared services centers to meet customer preferences and provide a new customer experience.


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51st State Perspectives: Massachusetts: A Great Clean Energy Story – DERs and the Next Chapter

 July 2, 2018

Massachusetts has been a leader in the deployment of clean energy. It was an early adopter of RPS and has focused on energy efficiency. The Commonwealth’s commitment to reducing its green house gas (GHG) has informed these policies, as well as other targets to implement EVs and battery storage.


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Prioritizing Transmission and Distribution Investments

 June 27, 2018

A Structured Approach to Determine What Reliability Improvements Cost

Introduction

Keep the lights on. Ensure safe, reliable, and affordable service. These are core mandates for electric utilities. To fulfill these mandates, electric utilities must make prudent investments in reliability programs and projects to maintain their transmission and distribution (T&D) systems. When load was growing year over year and power flowed in one direction from centralized generation facilities through long run transmission and stepped down through distribution facilities, this was a straightforward (if not necessarily simple) exercise.


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The Value of Data to Grid Transformation

 June 11, 2018

Introduction

Data is being produced at an exponential rate in all sectors, accelerated by mobile technology, the internet of things, and easily accessible, cost-effective, cloud-based computing. Driven by the proliferation of sensor technology and advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), utilities are also collecting more data than ever as smart grids get smarter.


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Strategies and Policy Considerations for an Uncertain Grid Market

 April 6, 2018

Coming out of the 2018 Infocast Transmission Summit, ScottMadden director, Stephen Haubrich, and partner and energy practice leader, Cristin Lyons, share key takeaways related to strategies and policy considerations for an uncertain grid market.


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While You Were Sleeping: The Unnoticed Loss of Carbon-free Generation in the United States

 March 5, 2018

Figure 1 has been updated to reflect category changes to Hope Creek and Salem in New Jersey as well as Palo Verde in Arizona. As a result of laws passed in New Jersey on April 12, Hope Creek and Salem have been moved from the “in jeopardy” category to the “reprieved” category. Additionally, after an announcement by Arizona Public Service Company that Palo Verde nuclear station could close if the state amends its constitution to require utilities to get 50% of their energy from renewable resources, Palo Verde has been moved from the “operating plant” category to the “in jeopardy” category. Figure 1 will be refreshed to reflect modifications in plant categories as developments affect the prospects for certain units in the U.S. nuclear fleet.


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Building the Business Case for Shared Services

 March 2, 2018

Shared services is a proven method for delivering support services. When organizations implement a shared services model, they typically see benefits that include improved service and scalability, improved leverage over enterprise data, and better control over costs. Before you make the transition to a shared services model, you’ll have to make the case to management. This article presents our recommended approach to developing the business case for shared services.


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Plan a Sustainable, Enterprise-wide RPA Model

 February 16, 2018

Companies are exploring and implementing technologies, like Robotic Process Automation, to improve performance across their organizations and extend the value of their business models. In fact, the RPA market is expected to grow to $1.2 billion by 2021 at a compound annual growth of 36 percent. In this white paper, we explore how to design a digital strategy to achieve a sustainable operating model for RPA and other process automation technologies in the face of this significant growth.


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FERC Ends Department of Energy’s Proposed Resilience Rule but Initiates a Resilience Proceeding of Its Own

 January 31, 2018

On January 8, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) terminated the proceeding initiated in September 2017 (Docket No. RM18-1-000) to address the proposed rule on grid reliability and resilience pricing (DOE NOPR) submitted to FERC by Secretary of Energy Perry. This decision came after FERC had been busy adding new commissioners as well as building its knowledgebase of grid reliability and resilience. FERC had received in excess of 1,500 comments on the DOE NOPR, and the commission had recently sworn in two commissioners, one of whom was Chairman McIntyre.


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Transmission Investment: Revisiting the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s Two-Step DCF Methodology for Calculating Allowed Returns on Equity

 January 8, 2018

On behalf of the Edison Electric Institute, ScottMadden prepared a white paper reviewing the “Two-step” Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model to set allowed Returns on Equity (ROE) for electric transmission investments, as adopted by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in Opinion No. 531. Despite the Commission’s goals of providing adequate returns to encourage transmission investment, the DCF approach used by the Commission tends to produce ROE estimates below other widely accepted alternative models and market indicators. The paper therefore recommends modifications to address some of the concerns with the Commission’s DCF approach.


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Welcome to ScottMadden!

Sussex Economic Advisors is now part of ScottMadden. We invite you to learn more about our expanded firm. Please use the Contact Us form to request additional information.