The Tennessee Chapter of the Sierra Club has presented Memphis Light, Gas & Water (MLGW) with the Energy Efficiency Star Award for its leadership and work to help households, businesses and industry take advantage of cost-effective opportunities to improve the efficiency of their electricity, natural gas and water usage. The award was presented to Jerry Collins, Jr., President and CEO of MLGW, on November 6th at the MLGW Board meeting.
“The Sierra Club thanks MLGW for its dedication to the most comprehensive, innovative and efficient energy solutions available,” said Scott Banbury, an organizer with the Sierra Club’s Tennessee Healthy Energy Campaign. “Not only is MLGW a leader in implementing TVA’s EnergyRight Solutions programs in Tennessee, but the utility is also a national leader in a variety of other energy conservation programs, which benefit consumers, businesses and the environment every day. The potential opportunities for energy efficiency technologies and programs in the future are enormous. The Sierra Club looks forward to working with MLGW and other local power companies to achieve even higher energy savings in the future.”
MLGW is ranked as a top performer by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) for participation in its EnergyRight Solutions programs. These programs save energy for end-use customers, stabilize power usage during high-demand periods, and increase the ability for TVA to minimize the need for additional power plants.
MLGW has also developed programs to assist low- to moderate-income homeowners through the Energy Efficiency & Conservation Block Grant Program. This program, funded through a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy and the City of Memphis, allowed MLGW to complete energy conservation projects from 2009-2013 on over 1,500 residences in the City of Memphis. The program was completed in March and provided approximately $5 million dollars in funding for a variety of energy efficiency projects. Projects ranged from the replacement of heating and cooling units and/or windows and doors, to adding attic insulation or addressing issues with leaking ductwork or water heaters. These efforts were combined with education on how to use energy more efficiently. Workshops, for example, were given to all program participants to provide the valuable education these residents needed to help better manage their energy usage now and into the future.
“Dedication to energy efficiency and conservation is a top priority in our organization,” said Tom Chamberlain, Strategic Marketing Coordinator for MLGW. “We strive to be a national leader in providing energy efficiency and conservation programs for all of our residential customers and businesses. Not only do we want to provide a variety of programs and services but we also help them manage their utility usage today and into the future.”
In 2012, MLGW offered a variety of residential programs to help its customers save energy and money, including the Self Audit and In-Home Energy Evaluation (IHEE) Pilot programs. Through the Self Audit program MLGW saved over 2.7 million kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity helping homeowners identify personalized energy improvements. MLGW also completed over 1,200 energy audits through IHEE, resulting in energy savings of over 1.8 million kWh. The IHEE program also provides cash incentives to homeowners who install energy-efficiency upgrades.
Additionally, MLGW helped businesses and industries in Memphis become more energy efficient by providing assessments for energy use and incentives for qualifying companies. MLGW customers saved over 25 million kWh for their participation in EnergyRight Solutions programs for Business and Industry.
“The Sierra Club appreciates MLGW’s commitment to reducing customers’ bills, avoiding the need for additional power plants and creating real environmental benefits through energy efficiency,” said Jonathan Levenshus, Senior Campaign Representative for the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign.
The Sierra Club’s Tennessee Healthy Energy campaign seeks to expand the energy-efficiency opportunities available to Tennessee households, businesses and industry. The campaign works with power distributors, TVA and the public to improve the quality of life in our region through wider adoption of energy efficiency.
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