To provide San Antonio City Council with an update on CPS Energy’s strategic plan, utility officials gave a brief presentation that encompassed recent energy acquisitions and updates on the company’s transition to more renewable resources Nov. 5.
The big picture
Known as the Vision 2027 Generation Plan, the plan was first approved Jan. 23, 2023, and guides CPS’s approach to diversifying and strengthening its sustainable resources portfolio. A major component of the plan is to use the diverse portfolio of solar, wind energy and more efficient gas generation methods to replace older coal and gas units by 2030, city documents state.
Elaina Ball, chief strategy officer for CPS, said the company uses five pillars to shape its approach.
“We have five key elements of Vision 2027: evolving the operations of our utility, focusing on our financial stability, centering all of our work around our customers, building a strong team culture, and encouraging community partnership and growth throughout the regions that we serve,” Ball said.
Approved generation plan components:
Retire or convert coal plantsRetire aging gas unitsAdd solar, wind, storage and gasConsider Climate Action Adaptation Plan goals as driversBring generation capacity to 7,251 megawatts with retirementReach over 5,700 megawatts from a new supply source by 2030 to replace retired coal and legacy natural gas facilities
During the presentation, CPS officials said it was ahead of its original 2023 generation plan and had increased its ownership share of a nuclear power plant and made major acquisitions of natural gas in late 2023. Ball said the transition from older coal and gas plants would become more noticeable in the coming years.
“Between now and 2030, we’re going to see a market change in those emissions that is largely due to us moving away from our coal units. That is the single largest step that, when we take that step, will have a substantial impact on the carbon intensity of our operations,” Ball said.
Ball also noted that CPS has increased its customer satisfaction rating.
“We have really been focused on customer satisfaction, and we were pleased this year to have achieved a 95% customer satisfaction rating for our managed accounts, and we continue to expand payment options and work to provide our customers better ways to engage with us,” Ball said.
What’s next?
CPS will work the refreshed Vision 2027 plan into next year’s budget.
