|
|
Spring is here! March 20th is the start of spring, and for EBCE and our friends that means:
-
Lots of renewable energy on the grid: we’ll likely see days where solar and wind are generating most of California’s peak energy use. You can check it out in real time here.
-
Lower energy usage because of mild weather; though we must say it has been a pretty mild February in the East Bay.
-
But, still high PG&E bills. PG&E raised electricity transmission and distribution rates by about 8% in January, they raised electricity rates another 9% in March, and natural gas rates have been soaring as well.
-
Thankfully, some utility bill debt relief. See article below on the California Arrearage Payment Program, which is removing millions of dollars of utility debt owed by EBCE customers.
|
|
|
Good news - relief is on the way for customers who accrued utility bill debt during the COVID pandemic. The California Arrearage Payment Program (CAPP) offers financial assistance for California energy utility customers to help reduce past due energy bill balances. Utilities including PG&E and EBCE will receive state funds to pay down utility bill debt for customers who incurred debt during the pandemic and still have a past due balance. If customers are eligible for the funds, the credit will be automatically applied to their account and they do not need to take any action. Funds will appear on customer bills in March 2022. Details at ebce.org/capp
|
|
|
On March 26th, the Oakland Roots will take the pitch at Laney College in Oakland for their first home game of the season! East Bay Community Energy is a proud founding partner of the Roots and is excited for what the season will bring. EBCE and the Roots will feature a local nonprofit of the game who will receive $510 for each goal scored by the Roots. EBCE will also host a booth at each Roots home game, so stop by to learn more about your local clean electricity generation provider!
|
|
Deep efficiency and electrification will provide energy savings and environmental benefits
Following an initial pilot upgrading and electrifying 12 Oakland homes, EBCE has partnered with BlocPower, the Brooklyn-based climate technology company, to electrify 60 additional homes throughout EBCE’s service territory. EBCE is providing $1M in project financing and $400,000 in incentives to fund this first-of-its-kind project for low- to medium-income (LMI) single-family households.
This partnership couples BlocPower’s unique, full service approach to electrifying buildings with financing from EBCE’s Local Development program to help homeowners in frontline communities access healthy and resilient home retrofits. BlocPower and EBCE work with independent community partners, including local building firm Revalue.io, to install affordable and clean heating, cooling, and hot water systems, and electric appliances. They will deliver weatherization and remediation and upgrade infrastructure–all to help reduce indoor air pollution, improve health outcomes, and increase home values and resiliency during extreme weather events.
|
|
|
Three times per year, EBCE issues sponsorships of up to $2,500 each to a handful of local organizations to help make our community shine. The application for the next round of sponsorship will close on March 31 with awards issued by April 30. Info and application can be found here.
|
|
Meet Feliz Ventura, the new Program Manager for Resilience
Feliz, an alumna of Pomona College and the University of California at San Diego, comes to EBCE with nearly two decades of experience in making the case for investments that ensure communities thrive in the context of the rapid technological and climatic changes of the 21st century. Before EBCE, Feliz worked to integrate climate resilience into infrastructure, urban, and real estate development at two global planning, design, and engineering firms, led the State of Washington's cleantech economic and market development program, and worked with global startups to measure and improve their ESG performance at the World Resources Institute in Washington, D.C. Now at EBCE, Feliz leads EBCE's Resilience Program, focused on developing and implementing energy resilience solutions for municipal, residential and medical customers that result in wide-ranging benefits across EBCE's service area.
|
|
Community Advisory Committee | 3/14/22 at 6pm
Board of Directors | 3/16/22 at 5pm
Executive Committee | 3/25/22 at 12pm
|
|
|
|
