LOS ANGELES (January 9, 2024)—The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) hosted its annual Utility Trends workshop virtually last month to inform its largest customers about the preparation for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games, along with major legislative and program updates. The event marked the sixth 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 its largest customers and stakeholders.
“This is an important event that gives us an opportunity to brief our largest and most complex-to-serve customers about legislation, projects, and initiatives that are most impactful to LADWP and to Los Angeles. We regard our Key Account customers as partners who can have a significant impact on Los Angeles through their operations and investments,” said Martin Adams, LADWP General Manager and Chief Engineer.
LADWP’s Key Accounts Section consists of approximately 30 account advisors who serve as the primary point of contact for the utility’s largest institutional, governmental, and commercial customers, who often have the most varied and complex operational needs. Account advisors work closely with these customers to ensure the safe, reliable, and cost-effective delivery of water and power in a customer-focused, personalized, and environmentally responsible manner.
At the Utility Trends workshop, Michelle Schwartz , Chief External Affairs Officer for the LA28 Olympic and Paralympic Games, introduced the audience to the efforts that her team is undertaking to prepare Los Angeles for the games including developing partnerships with a variety of institutions and governmental agencies, LADWP included.
In addition to supporting the LA28 Olympic and Paralympic Games, LADWP’s long-term plans need to be aligned with newly-enacted environmental legislation. LADWP’s Interim Director of Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs Paul Habib briefed the attendees about federal grants for hydrogen projects and grid resiliency that LADWP has already received, and continues to apply for, and about state legislation with impacts on water resources.
As a follow up from the 2022 Utility Trends event, David Pettijohn, LADWP Director of Water Resources, provided an update on the Operation NEXT Water Supply Program, which aims to maximize recycled water supply from the Hyperion Water Reclamation Plant for reuse within Los Angeles to advance the City’s environmental mandates and goals.
No utility trends event can ignore the advancements in the electrification of transportation, and LADWP is no exception. The event attendees benefited from an introduction to the recently approved Commercial Energy Storage to Grid (CES2G) program that enables participating customers to convert their electric vehicles to mobile batteries and send power back to LADWP’s electric grid. LADWP can take that unused energy for its grid, or store it for later use to help reduce its reliance on fossil fuels and achieve greater grid reliability. CES2G, is the nation’s first municipal utility vehicle-to-grid (V2G) and energy storage-to-grid program.
“LADWP commends our customers for their interest and participation in our many energy efficiency and distributed energy resource programs. To further support these efforts, LADWP will unveil increased incentive rates, new measure offerings including electrification, and a simplified application process in early 2024. This helps our customers manage their energy costs while helping us manage the transition to a decarbonized grid in the most cost-effective way possible,” said David Jacot, LADWP’s Director of Distributed Energy Solutions.
Watch the 2023 Utility Trends webinar event recording here: https://vimeo.com/ladwp/utilitytrends2023
