More Homes, Businesses Also Got Power Back in 24
Hours or Less
JACKSON,
Mich., Jan. 14, 2025 /PRNewswire/
-- Consumers Energy's commitment to building a smarter and
stronger electric grid led to major reliability improvements for
nearly 2 million homes and businesses in 2024. The average customer
experienced 21 fewer power outage minutes compared to last
year, and over 93% of customers saw their power restored in
less than 24 hours.
"We're excited to better serve our friends and neighbors through
our Reliability Roadmap. Even with major storms and tornadoes last
year, we moved closer to goals that enable better quality of life
in the Michigan communities we
serve," said Greg Salisbury,
Consumers Energy's vice president of grid design. "Last year's
improvements were significant, and we plan to build on them in
2025."
Consumers Energy's Reliability Roadmap has set long-term goals
to have fewer power outages affecting no more than 100,000
customers, even during major storms) and to restore power to all
customers in less than 24 hours.
In 2023, Consumers Energy restored power within 24 hours nearly
87% of the time. The increase to 93% represents a major step
forward – the result of faster responses to catastrophic storms and
ongoing investments to strengthen the grid.
The average Consumers Energy customer also went without power
for 155 minutes in normal weather last year, down from 176
minutes. The 12% decrease in total minutes without power from 2023
to 2024 is the largest improvement over the past decade.
"We understand how important it is to keep the lights on for our
communities who count on us, and we're driven to do better every
day," said Chris Laird, Consumers
Energy's vice president of electric distribution. "We are carrying
out our plan to build on this progress. When you see Consumers
Energy crews at work, they're adding new technology, clearing trees
away or burying power lines to build a stronger grid."
Consumers Energy carried out over 1,350 major upgrades and
cleared trees, limbs and branches along 7,000 miles of electric
lines last year. Other tactics included new technology, infrared
cameras, more durable iron poles and even a robotic dog.
Consumers Energy is Michigan's
largest energy provider, providing natural gas and/or electricity
to 6.8 million of the state's 10 million residents in all 68 Lower
Peninsula counties. Consumers Energy knows job number one is to
keep the lights on for customers. We are committed to delivering
reliable, clean, and affordable energy to our customers
24/7.
For more information about Consumers Energy, go to
ConsumersEnergy.com.
Check out Consumers Energy on Social
Media
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/consumersenergymichigan
Twitter: https://twitter.com/consumersenergy
LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/consumersenergy
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/consumersenergy
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SOURCE Consumers Energy