Tom Johnson reports for NJ Spotlight:
Izzo’s message: there are ‘billions’ to be made from energy efficiency, while industry and regulators squabble ‘over tens of millions’
Ralph Izzo, chairman, president and CEO
of PSEG
of PSEG
New Jersey’s most prominent energy executive yesterday called for the state to revamp its regulatory system to make it easier for homeowners to use less energy and to have more access to energy-saving technologies — both with the support of and profit to utilities.
Ralph Izzo, the president and chief executive of Public Service Enterprise Group, mostly veered off from touting the benefits of nuclear power, a recurring preoccupation of the company in recent months, in a speech to the Chamber of Commerce of Southern New Jersey in Mount Laurel.
Instead, he called for broad changes to the utility business model that would let companies like PSEG shift investments away from big-ticket items like power plants to technology to help customers use less energy and have broader access to cleaner, renewable energy.
A familiar topic
The topic is a familiar one for Izzo over the past decade, especially for a company that has invested about $400 million in a series of energy-efficiency initiatives, but would like to ramp up those expenditures. It currently has a $93 million filing before the state Board of Public Utilities to do energy-savings projects at hospitals, schools, and multifamily units.
But Izzo expressed frustration at repeatedly going back to regulators for approval of projects that have proven to have broad support. “I marvel it didn’t sail right through,’’ he told reporters following the 20-minute talk to the business crowd, referring to the latest energy efficiency proposal. It was filed with the board in March.
“There are billions of dollars of energy efficiency (projects) we could be doing and we are squabbling over tens of millions of dollars,’’ Izzo said.
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