Year in review
January
SMUD lineworker repairing equipment
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On December 31, 2022, relentless storms arrived and refused to let up for 3 weeks. With 70+ mph hurricane force winds, 17 inches of rain and about 600,000 customers without power, it was all hands-on deck as we worked around the clock to restore our customers’ power. Thanks to the dedication of our employees during this unprecedented time, SMUD went above and beyond for our customers and remained steadfast in our commitment to enhancing our storm response capabilities, recognizing the increasing frequency of extreme weather events due to climate change.
February
In its 8th year, SMUD’s annual Shine program funded 22 community nonprofit organizations with $513,000 to launch community-focused projects, including upgrades along business corridors, youth and job-readiness programs, habitat revitalization and neighborhood revitalization. These projects will pave the way for a clean energy future.
The Right-of-Way Stewardship Council (ROWSC), an accreditation program that establishes standards for responsible environmentally sustainable right-of-way vegetation management, re-accredited SMUD with a “Right-of-Way Steward Award” for our sustainable integrated Vegetation Management on our electric transmission right-of-way systems.
March
SMUD employees meeting with
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After a few years of collaboration with Gardenland Northgate Neighborhood Association, we joined them and the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in a door-to-door effort distributing information to 133 businesses in the Northgate corridor, creating a template for other business district electrification projects. We also reached out to residents in this community, many of whom live in older, less energy-efficient homes and include a higher concentration of low-income customers, to support them with electrification options and energy efficiency programs.
During the pandemic, a cross-functional SMUD team worked with the state legislature to secure over $51 million in financial assistance, through the California Arrearage Payment Program (CAPP), for SMUD customers struggling to afford their bill. In April 2023, we reinstated the normal collection process.
April
For the first time since 2006, our partner and customer the Sacramento Kings competed for an NBA championship, so we lit our newest downtown substation, Station G, in a brilliant purple during the Kings’ playoff run.
Groundbreaking at Solano wind farm |
In partnership with the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District and the California Air Resources Board, SMUD helped Pepsi’s Sacramento facility become the first location in the world to receive 21 new Tesla semi-trucks for its fleet, which included 4 750kW Tesla Mega chargers and a Tesla Megapack battery.
At a groundbreaking ceremony at our Solano Wind Project, the SMUD Board and executive team joined Solano County officials and our project partners to commence construction of Phase 4, replacing 23 turbines with 19 brand-new, much larger turbines that will generate 85.5 megawatts of carbon-free energy for our region.
May
A 5-person SMUD line crew spent 2 weeks in Arizona as part of the Light Up Navajo Nation Initiative, once again joining other utility crews from across the United States in providing crucial power to rural households. Of the 50,000 households in Navajo Nation, about 15,000 are without electricity.
June
SMUD EV at Power Inn Fast Charger Plaza
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Alongside other local partners, we celebrated completing electric upgrades at Sacramento Manor, the largest all-electric multi-family retrofit project of its kind in California and opened one of the largest high-speed EV charging hubs in the state. The Giddyup/Regional Transit DC Fast Charger Plaza at Sacramento Regional Transit’s Power Inn Station expanded regional charging access with 10 new high-power DC Fast chargers.
SMUD was recognized by the Climate Bonds Initiative as the first U.S. Issuer of a Certified Bond under the Climate Bond Standard v4 in the Electrical Grids and Storage Sector. Having this designation allows us to target investors that place a premium on Green/Climate Certified bonds.
July
SMUD ranked 1st in the 2023 J.D. Power Sustainability Index, a comprehensive evaluation of the nation’s largest electric utilities’ customer awareness, engagement and advocacy related to their local climate sustainability programs and goals.
Nearly 120 visitors attended our first Women in Skilled Trades Day, aimed at inspiring women to apply for careers they have historically been unrepresented in, to continue to build a diverse talent pool.
August
We introduced our newest state-of-the-art substation, Station G, to members of the SMUD Board, the media and other local elected leaders at a ribbon cutting ceremony. The new substation came online in December 2022 and is a critical part of SMUD’s network powering downtown Sacramento with safe, clean, low-cost and reliable energy.
September
Digital ad from the "Contact SMUD first"
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SMUD’s inaugural Connecting our Communities Resource Expo had a huge turnout, connecting hundreds of our residential customers in need with programs like our Energy Assistance Program Rate, Medical Discount Rate and Energy Saver Bundles, as well as other essential services from other community providers.
Our “Contact SMUD first” marketing campaign launched, encouraging customers to reach out to SMUD first when they’re considering purchasing or leasing an EV, advise on charging options and low rates to help them make informed decisions based on their circumstances.
October
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Grid Deployment’s Grid Resilience and Innovative Partnerships program (GRIP) announced SMUD as a $50 million GRIP grant recipient for our Connected Clean PowerCity project. The grant is part of the DOE’s largest-ever single direct investment in critical grid infrastructure. The project covers several technology-enhancing initiatives to accelerate the new generation of smart meters, the integration of renewables and other new technologies to increase the reliability, efficiency and flexibility of our electric grid to support our clean energy transition. Through this project, we’ll also collaborate with the Wilton Rancheria Tribe of Miwok Indians to holistically evaluate building electrification opportunities and the integration of solar, storage and electrification on Tribal lands into the regional grid.
November
Workgroups from across SMUD collaborated to make enhancements to SMUD’s storm response efforts, guided by the principles of safety, certainty in restoration times, outage prioritization, enhanced technology and improved performance measurement. A storm response team evaluated processes, procedures and customer experience and the organization made several improvements to better serve our customers during storms, including the release of some new digital tools for our customers.
December
Calpine Corporation’s carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) project proposal for Sutter Energy Center was announced as 1 of 3 projects to receive funding from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations. SMUD supported Calpine’s grant application and is working to develop a Power Purchase Agreement. As the only carbon capture and storage project selected in California, the Sutter Decarbonization Project will demonstrate and deploy a commercial-scale CCS system at Calpine’s 550-megawatt natural gas combined-cycle power plant.