NEW YORK, June 2, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Con Edison has
completed projects throughout New York
City and Westchester County
to maintain its industry-leading reliability while continuing to
lead the state's shift toward renewables and other clean
technologies.
The company invested $1.5 billion
on new cable, transformers, network protectors, switches and other
components that make its electric-delivery system robust.
Meanwhile, the company continues to lead New York State's transition to a low-carbon,
clean energy future. Con Edison is adding energy storage to its
system and investing in transmission to bring renewable energy to
customers. The company is helping customers save with energy
efficiency programs, connect solar panels and adopt electric
vehicles.
"We are making targeted investments based on data and metrics to
keep our service reliable while leading the transition to a
low-carbon future with cleaner air and water, better health and an
economy driven by green jobs," said Matthew
Ketschke, the president of Con Edison. "We are optimistic
about our region's economic and environmental prospects as we
emerge from the enormous challenges the pandemic has posed."
"The perseverance of New Yorkers has placed our region on the
cusp of a recovery from the health crisis," he said. "Their desire
for clean energy will help keep our region safe and sustainable for
generations to come."
Con Edison crews have installed 22 new network transformers, 120
overhead transformers, 54 sections of underground cable, 175 spans
of overhead wire and 139 utility poles in preparation for the
summer. Con Edison also continues to invest in resiliency with a
project that will place lines serving about 200 customers
underground in areas of Queens,
Staten Island and Westchester County.
A project to improve reliability in southeast Staten Island includes the replacement of 26
spans of open wire conductor with 46 spans of aerial cable. It also
includes the installation of 21 poles, 2 manholes, and 5 overhead
transformer replacements.
In White Plains, the company is
replacing 49 spans of wire that are overloaded
during times of high demand for power.
In addition, Con Edison has developed technology and procedures
to limit the number of customers on the overhead electric-delivery
system who could lose service when a cable or substation equipment
fails due to excessive heat and demand for power.
The company's operators can open switches on the overhead system
in areas of Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx to prevent power from shifting from
failed cables and onto other cables that remain in service. That
prevents the cables still in service from becoming overloaded.
Summer
Bills
The company projects summer electricity costs
for the typical Westchester County
residential customer will be higher this summer due to increased
supply charges by power generators and an increase in delivery
charges that went into effect earlier this year. But supply charges
are projected to drop for residential customers in New York City.
Con Edison does not make a profit on these supply charges. The
company buys power on the market from generators and provides it to
customers at cost.
A typical Westchester
residential customer using 500 kilowatt hours per month can expect
an average increase of 6.5 percent from $122.32 in 2020 to $130.31. A typical New
York City residential customer using 350 kilowatt hours per
month can expect a 4.2-percent decrease from $106.58 in 2020 to $102.11 in the June-to-September period.
A New York City business
customer using 10,800 kilowatt hours with a peak demand of 31
kilowatts can expect average monthly summer bills to increase from
$2,234.89 in 2020 to $2,497.75 this year.
In recognition of the hardship the pandemic has created for many
customers, Con Edison last year suspended turnoffs for non-payment
and is waiving new late fees. The company offers payment plans for
customers having trouble paying their bill. Customers with arrears
should call 1-800-75-CONED to discuss payment plans.
Con Edison projects that demand for power this summer could peak
at 12,880 megawatts under design weather conditions. Last summer's
peak of 11,740 megawatts occurred at 2
p.m. on July 28. The
2020 peak was driven down by the closure of many businesses and
office buildings. The record is 13,322 megawatts, which occurred at
5 p.m. on July
19, 2013.
If demand for power places stress on the delivery system, the
company can take special steps such as rolling generators to
neighborhoods. Operators can also reduce voltage or move power
among cables to prevent any from becoming overloaded.
Con Edison Is a Clean Energy Leader
Con Edison
supports the environmental goals of New
York City and New York
State, as it makes clear in its Clean Energy Commitment.
Con Edison is all in on electric vehicles because studies show
that meeting the environmental goals will require a dramatic
decrease in emissions from transportation.
Under the company's PowerReady incentive program, parties that
install level 2 or direct-current fast chargers can offset some, or
in certain cases, all of the upfront infrastructure costs of
preparing a site
The program, which is one of the most aggressive in the nation,
will provide incentives for about 19,000 charging plugs across
New York City and Westchester County by the end of 2025.
Customers who install solar panels on their homes and businesses
save on their bills and provide an assist to Con Edison's quest to
keep service reliable. Customers have installed more than 38,000
solar arrays with the capacity to produce 344 megawatts of
renewable power.
During the course of a year, the panels could produce enough
power to prevent the amount of greenhouse gases produced by 70,000
vehicles.
In a Con Edison demonstration project with the New York City
Housing Authority, nonprofit Solar One, Accord Power and other
partners, apprentice solar panel installers are placing panels on
three NYCHA developments. The power will go to low- and
middle-income Con Edison customers at discounted prices.
Con Edison and a business partner recently placed online a
1-megawatt battery system at a customer site on City Island in the
Bronx to buttress reliability
along the Main Street business strip at times of high demand. The
storage system is the second Con Edison has installed under a
demonstration project. The first was on the North Shore of
Staten Island and the next will be
in Woodside, Queens.
The company has a 2-megawatt battery system in Ozone Park, Queens to support reliability at times of high
demand.
Con Edison is ahead of schedule on the largest capital project
in its long history, having completed the installation of 4 million
of the more than 4.8 million smart meters it is providing to
customers. The rollout will be substantially complete by the end of
the year, though workers will finish up in 2022 by installing up to
200,000 meters in properties where they have had trouble getting
access despite repeated tries.
Smart meters give customers more information and ability to
manage their usage, which saves them money and brings environmental
benefits. The meters also let Con Edison operators adjust voltage
levels and reduce the power that our customers need to serve a
given load. Reducing power usage, lowers the fuel required to
generate power and reduces the associated emissions.
Save More with Energy Efficiency Upgrades
Customers
can save money by using less energy. Con Edison offers customers
incentives to make money-saving upgrades to their homes and
businesses. For this summer, Con Edison is offering residential
customers:
- A $50 discount for buying a smart
thermostat at the Con Edison Marketplace and another $85 for registering it with Con Edison's Bring
Your Own Thermostat (BYOT) Program.
- Rebates on heat pumps that can also cool your home.
Con Edison is offering incentives for commercial and industrial
customers. They include:
- Cash incentives for installing energy efficient electric and
gas equipment.
- Instant lighting incentives.
- Savings for upgrading to more efficient LED lighting. Get up to
$300 per LED fixture. See more
information on available incentives.
- Small and medium-size businesses can get a free, no-obligation
energy assessment of their facility. Con Edison will pay up to 70
percent of the cost for qualified lighting, HVAC, refrigeration and
gas system upgrades.
Con Edison is a subsidiary of Consolidated Edison, Inc. [NYSE:
ED], one of the nation's largest investor-owned energy companies,
with approximately $12 billion in
annual revenues and $62 billion in
assets. The utility delivers electricity, natural gas and steam to
3.5 million customers in New York
City and Westchester County,
N.Y. For financial, operations and customer service
information, visit www.conEd.com.
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SOURCE Con Edison of New
York