We’re in a period of transformation when it comes to energy, and electric utilities continue to play an important role in this transition in the form of advancements in technology, customer service, resiliency, and overall performance. Whether it’s investment in emerging technologies such as hydrogen, installing or helping to install electric vehicle charging infrastructure, offering dynamic or time-varying rates, or simply educating customers about smart energy programs, public power utilities continue to make significant strides.
In recognition of utility efforts in these areas, APPA developed the Smart Energy Provider designation program to honor members who show service excellence in efficiency, distributed energy resources, sustainability, and environmental initiatives. Outside of gaining national recognition, the program helps utilities benchmark their work in these areas against others in the industry, serving as a vehicle for peer evaluation based on industry best practices.
Celebrating Smart Energy
Currently, 97 public power utilities have earned the SEP designation. This two-year designation demonstrates the utility’s achievements to its community, as well as a commitment to a new energy future.
In addition to sharing this status with their communities, APPA celebrates SEP designees, including through the upcoming SEP Week, February 12-16. The week, with the theme “We Love Smart Energy,” shows off why the designation is meaningful, and offers another chance to educate customers on all the work public power utilities are doing in these areas.
One previous designee expressed the importance of the SEP designation in communicating value to customers:
The Smart Energy Provider award is an honor to receive as we take pride in offering our customers options in energy efficiency and renewable initiatives. It tells our customers that we are here to help them and are proactively thinking about programs that they would benefit from now and into the future.
Designees can email SEP@PublicPower.org to request access to graphics to help celebrate the week – or create your own ‘valentines’ to smart energy to share!
How to Apply
If you think your utility qualifies for a designation — or if you want to find out how you stack up against your peers — then the application process goes as follows:
1. Register to receive the application.
2. Take a look at the application. Utility applicants are scored across four program areas: Smart Energy Information, Energy Efficiency & Distributed Energy Resources, Environmental & Sustainability Programs and Initiatives, and Communication, Education, and Customer Experience. Utilities that achieve a score of 70 or greater (out of 100 possible) merit a SEP designation. In familiarizing yourself with the questions, you can get a sense of whether your utility might qualify as a smart energy provider, what information you need to collect, and who you’ll need to work with to complete the application.
3. Work as a team to compile all the necessary information.
4. Submit your completed application no later than April 30, 2024.
5. Applications are graded by a panel comprising a diverse assortment of APPA member volunteers, all of whom are experts in the fields represented in the SEP program and are committed to fairly evaluating each application. (Nominations are also currently open for members of the SEP panel.)
6. Receive your application score – and learn whether you earned the designation. Panel members and APPA staff are willing to speak with applicants who did not receive a high enough score to earn a designation to see if anything was overlooked, which could be rescored correctly to earn that utility a designation.
Going through this process can help utilities spur and track innovation and investment into smart energy programs. One utility saw its score increase by 14 points between application cycles after adding a program to track emissions associated with its fuel supply. The utility also updated its strategic plan to incorporate planning for demand-response programs and time-of-use rates based in part on information it gleaned from the application.
You can also view a recording of our recent webinar to learn more about the application process and what makes for a strong application.