Municipal Electric and Gas Alliance

May 2024 Edition

MEGA has a new website to better serve our members and municipal leaders.

NYSAC Advocates for Clean Energy Communities Program in Comments Submitted to PSC

This week, MEGA partner NYSAC joined the New York Conference of Mayors (NYCOM) and the Association of Towns (AOT), in submitting public comments on a Public Service Commission (PSC) proceeding that will determine how the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) engages local governments over the next five years in support of New York State's building decarbonization goals.

The comments communicate key concerns from members about replacing NYSERDA's Clean Energy Communities (CEC) program with Clean Energy Municipal Leadership Cohorts and outline several suggestions to ensure effective local government engagement in clean energy initiatives:

Preserve the CEC Program: The CEC program is essential for local governments to support the Climate Act's energy goals and should be continued beyond 2025. Unlike the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC)'s Climate Smart Communities (CSC) program, which is more broadly focused on sustainability, CEC focuses specifically on clean energy projects and offers unmatched support in advancing local energy projects.

Maintain Match-Free Grants: Match-free grants are crucial for enabling counties and municipalities to implement clean energy projects without additional financial burdens. This unique feature of the CEC program streamlines the local decision-making process and increases the likelihood of important decarbonization projects being undertaken.

Support CEC Coordinators: CEC's regional coordinators offer indispensable expertise and support, helping local governments avoid common pitfalls in project implementation. Ending the CEC program without replicating its unique support would critically undermine municipalities' ability to meet state and local energy goals.

Streamline Local Government Participation: While the proposed Clean Energy Municipal Leadership Cohorts aim to enhance knowledge sharing, they may strain already overextended county and municipal staff. This issue can be mitigated by integrating these objectives into the existing CEC framework and tasking NYSERDA and its coordinators with promoting success stories and best practices.

Maintain Program Consistency: Consistency in NYSERDA's program offerings is vital for municipalities to plan and execute long-term energy projects effectively. Frequent changes to program structures can set back progress and hinder local governments' capacity to support statewide decarbonization efforts.

More details are available here.

Electricity Pricing is Inching Up Amidst Demand Growth

Avoid Volatility and Price Shocks with Long-Term Planning

The amount of natural gas in underground storage remains strong, sitting 21% above prior-year levels and 33% above 5-year average levels. This surplus has supported the lower natural gas pricing we have seen since the start of the new year. However, due to the lower pricing, producers have started to cut back on production, and production levels have decreased by almost 10% since early 2024, now dipping below prior-year levels.

The cutback in production, shown below, is expected to soften the current storage surplus, and in turn, increase natural gas pricing. We’ve already started to see this come true as the prompt month price of natural gas has climbed over 20% since mid-February. With an anticipated warmer-than-average summer season approaching New York state, demand levels for natural gas-generated electricity is also expected to rise. The combination of lower supply and higher demand has the potential to push natural gas, and in turn electricity, pricing back toward the high 2022 rates.

For more details, or to discuss your individual energy strategy, please reach out to us at info@megaenergy.org.

Why the Municipal Electric and Gas Alliance?

With volatile pricing and higher fees, more and more and more local governments and schools are becoming members of the Municipal Electric and Gas Alliance (MEGA) for their energy purchasing needs.

It all comes down to the Power of Partnerships. We've already put the puzzle pieces together for you!

Using MEGA member Genesee County’s competitive bid process for electricity and natural gas, more than 260 local governments and schools are piggybacking off the MEGA procurement contract for their energy supply needs. This alleviates the need for your purchasing department to do a full RFP. Instead, they can simply get pricing from the winners of those bids: Constellation for electricity and NRG for natural gas.

MEGA’s contract options provide the flexibility and stability for local governments and schools to fix pricing for a year, two years, or more, depending on your operational and budgetary needs.

When it comes to exploring renewable energy options, MEGA’s technical energy experts provide free consulting services to help local leaders better understand the options that can reduce costs and/or lower carbon emissions.

Through its partnerships with NYSAC, EnergyNext, Constellation, and NRG, MEGA is poised to bring more local governments into the MEGA program.

To find out how MEGA can help your local government or school district, send an email to info@megaenergy.org or visit megaenergy.org.

Roadmap to Sustainability

As the demand for energy continues to rise, integrating sustainability into your energy strategy has emerged as a key priority. This approach not only aims to meet your current energy needs but also focuses on reducing environmental impact, promoting clean energy resources, and ensuring long-term sustainability.

The value of an integrated energy strategy has been evident for years, but organizations often face significant challenges in developing and implementing a comprehensive sustainability plan. The pursuit of sustainability progress and decarbonization alongside energy management is creating a new level of complexity that is transforming day-to-day business operations. There are countless energy solutions in the market with new technologies emerging every year, but deciding which ones to implement, how, and when can be a significant undertaking. Even for those that have successfully shaped their strategy, many find that they are ill-equipped to measure its effectiveness, timeliness or ROI.

Constellation Navigator, with its deep experience in energy management and sustainability, is well-equipped to help your business address these complex challenges and create effective sustainability strategies. For more information, read Constellation's Energy4Business Blog: Top 3 Challenges for Businesses Starting a Sustainability Plan.

Supporting the Associations that Serve Local Leaders

In the past couple of weeks, MEGA has been at some great local government conferences, including County Finance School, the Tug Hill Commission conference in Oneida County, and the State Association of Municipal Purchasing Officials in Warren County.

For more information, to book a consultation, invite us to a meeting, or to get pricing, email info@megaenergy.org or call Mark LaVigne at 518-429-0189 or Aleks Urosevic at 847-274-2283.

Our Partners:

Visit MEGAEnergy.org to learn more!