The Sacramento Municipal Utility District tied for the top ranking in the nation on the Sustainability Index measured by J.D Power.
SMUD tied with LA Water & Power with an index rating of 39, while the other Sacramento region power provider, Pacific Gas & Electric Co. (NYSE: PCG), rated 33 on the index.
“Electric utilities need buy-in from customers on sustainability targets to justify rate cases, garner support for infrastructure projects and drive the kind of consumer usage and behavioral changes needed to achieve sustainability goals,” said Andrew Heath, vice president of utilities intelligence at J.D. Power, in a news release. “But the lack of awareness of these initiatives and the large amount of pessimism surrounding climate change is creating an uphill battle.”
The battle is steeper for SMUD because three years ago it set a zero-carbon goal of 2030, the most aggressive zero-carbon target of any major utility in the nation.
After 2030, SMUD aims to rely only on renewables and battery storage and it aims to eliminate all fossil fuel use by the district, including shutting down gas-powered generators that still have years of life left on them.
And while SMUD tied for the top spot, it was just a score of 39 on a scale of 100. That is an improvement over last year, when SMUD tied with a Florida utility for the top spot with an index score of 35.
According to J.D. Power’s 2024 Sustainability Index, just 22% of electric utility customers are aware of their electric utility’s carbon-reduction initiatives, despite the fact that 80% of U.S. utility customers are served by providers with a 100% carbon-reduction target.
The survey also found that customers are nearly three times more likely to list “energy prices” over “environmental issues” as their most important energy-related issue.
If the carbon reduction goals most utilities have in place are going to be achieved, customers need to play a key role, J.D. Power said. And, according to J.D. Power, to get customers to play a role, they need to know about the utility’s plans.
In addition to zero-carbon goals, SMUD's 2030 zero-carbon target is also aimed at reducing air pollution in its service area of Sacramento County, which during some seasons does not achieve clean air standards.
The utility plans to invest about $4.5 billion to decarbonize its energy supply. SMUD’s goal is 15 years ahead of the statewide carbon neutrality target.
SMUD is active in offering and informing customers about incentives and rebates for efficiency upgrades like induction cooktops for the kitchen and heat pump systems to replace air conditioning.
It supports its customers considering switching to electric vehicles and adding car chargers. It also has programs and incentives for customers to add solar and battery storage systems.
