LOS ANGELES (January 9, 2023)—The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) recently hosted its annual Utility Trends workshop virtually to update its largest customers on the utility’s efforts to meet their electric and water service needs while prioritizing efficiency, sustainability, and regulatory compliance. The event marks the fifth year that LADWP’s Key Account customers have joined the utility to look ahead to industry trends and how the utility’s long-term plans may affect commercial, industrial, and institutional customers.
“Through this annual event, we are able to bring our largest customers into the fold and offer them an up-close glimpse at our current projects and priorities, and discuss what impacts those may have on their operations in the coming years. This information sharing is imperative, as it ensures our commercial customers understand how leveraging our programs and initiatives to better their bottom line will also help us, as a city, reach our sustainability goals,” said Los Angeles Board of Water and Power Commissioner Nicole Neeman Brady, who served as keynote speaker at the virtual event.
In addition to covering new legislation and governmental changes that may affect the utility industry, the event illuminated the steps LADWP is taking to reach its environmental goals while also putting programs and structures into place to support its customers as they work to meet their own sustainability targets.
“The utility landscape is changing under a variety of factors, including climate change and the related higher temperatures and drought, and LADWP is reacting to those changes. But we cannot succeed without the support of our customers. And as we embark on a number of initiatives that we believe will reshape the City of Los Angeles, including LA100, electrification, and Operation NEXT, it is critical for us that our Key Account customers—who are not only our largest customers but also our stakeholders and partners—are aware of and engaged in these efforts,” said George Rofail, LADWP Chief Customer Officer.
Representatives from across the organization provided updates on large-scale projects that have the potential to reshape the entire city—such as the role of green hydrogen in helping Los Angeles achieve 100% carbon-free energy by 2035 and the Operation NEXT Water Supply Program, which aims to maximize recycled water supply from the Hyperion Water Reclamation Plant for reuse within Los Angeles. These water and power capital projects will push the city closer to its sustainability targets—and likewise support many commercial customers’ environmental mandates and goals—but will also affect commercial customers through the utility’s rates.
The event also covered some of LADWP’s water conservation, energy efficiency, and electrification programs for commercial customers, such as the Technical Assistance Program (TAP), which provides incentives for the implementation of large water-conserving projects, and Zero-by-Design, which aims to help developers and designers create net-zero emissions buildings. These programs allow customers to earn incentives and save on their utility bills while curbing water and power consumption. The event also highlighted how, in particular, customer efforts in efficiency and electrification will be instrumental in helping LADWP reach 100% carbon-free energy by 2035 in the most cost-effective manner possible.
LADWP’s Key Accounts Section consists of approximately 30 account advisors who serve as the primary point of contact for the utility’s largest commercial customers, who often have the most varied and complex operational needs. Account advisors work closely with commercial customers to ensure the safe, reliable, and cost-effective delivery of water and power in a customer-focused, personalized, and environmentally responsible manner. The section’s annual Utility Trends workshop is LADWP’s only event specifically designed to update commercial customers on the utility’s programs and initiatives.
To view the 2022 Utility Trends webinar event recording, please visit https://vimeo.com/771665367.
