CEO Report Item 11
CEO Report Item 11
TO: East Bay Community Energy Board of Directors
FROM: Nick Chaset, Chief Executive Officer
SUBJECT: CEO Report (Informational Item)
DATE: July 19, 2023
________________________________________________________________________ Recommendation
Accept Chief Executive Officer (CEO) report on update items below.
Executive Committee Meeting
The July 5, 2023 Executive Committee Meeting was canceled. The next Executive Committee meeting will be held on Wednesday, September 6, 2023.
Finance, Administration and Procurement Subcommittee Meeting A meeting of the Finance, Administration and Procurement Subcommittee was held on Wednesday, July 12, 2023. Members discussed the upcoming 2023 FAP Agenda Items schedule, received an overview of the 2023 Long-Term Resource RFO and reviewed next steps for EBCE’s third energy prepay transaction. The next meeting of the Financial, Administration and Procurement Subcommittee will be held in September at a time to be determined.
Special Board Retreat – Analytics
A Special Board Retreat – Analytics was held on Thursday, July 13, 2023. Members received an update from the Analytics team about its current activities. This retreat concludes the series.
Brand Identity Update
Following the approval on the new agency name of Ava Community Energy at last month's board meeting, staff started work on the updated visual identity. Staff continues to work with the ad hoc committees of the Board and Community Advisory Committee to get feedback on the logo. There is a board recess in August, and two highly visible customer programs slated to roll out in the September/October timeframe (e-bike lending and induction cooking CEO Report Item 11
demonstrations). In order to apply a new visual identity to these programs and prepare key partners for an October soft launch of the new name and visual identity, we need to finalize the designs prior to a September board meeting. Therefore, staff will work with the ad hoc committees over the next several weeks and bring the visual identity back to the Board in September as an informational item.
Inclusion of New Communities: Expansion of Service to San Joaquin County Jurisdictions (i.e., the City of Lathrop)
Last Fall, at the September 21st Board meeting, EBCE’s Board voted unanimously to welcome the City of Stockton to our agency’s Joint Powers Authority (JPA) and growing service area.
Since that time, neighboring San Joquin County jurisdictions have been similarly engaged with EBCE to explore potential JPA membership and future service area expansion.
On March 13, 2023, the City of Lathrop invited EBCE staff to present an informational item to the City Council about Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) generally, and EBCE membership specifically. Thereafter, the City’s staff coordinated with EBCE to request its citywide electricity usage data from PG&E in ancticipation of the Council’s future interest in exploring EBCE membership/service more closely. EBCE has since received this data from PG&E.
At Lathrop’s most recent City Council meeting (July 10, 2023), City staff recommeneded the Council pass an Ordinance and Resolution prospectively seeking EBCE membership and service area expansion. EBCE staff was invited to particpate in this discussion and public comments were supportive of the City’s EBCE membership consideration. The Council concluded by voting unanimously to approve the items presented and pursue EBCE membershp before the end of the 2023 calendar year.
The next steps for Lathrop’s EBCE membership consideration are as follows: 1) The City completes a required second reading of its Ordinance to join EBCE (scheduled for the August 14, 2023, City Council meeting); 2) EBCE’s staff completes an internal, quantitative analysis evaluating the agency’s ability to serve Lathrop’s citywide electric load; 3) EBCE’s staff presents the results of the quantitative analysis to the Board with a recommendation regarding the City’s membership request; 4) EBCE’s Board votes to include the City within its JPA and future service area; and 5) EBCE submits an updated Implementation Plan to the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) before the end of the 2023 calendar year. If all these conditions are met, EBCE would prepare to begin serving Lathrop in early 2025, along with the City of Stockton’s start of service. Please refer to the attached PPT re City of Lathrop’s EBCE membership consideration.
New Staff
Christa Davis, Account Services Manager
Christa joined EBCE on 6/27/23 as the Manager of Account Services. Her essential duties and responsibilities include serving as EBCE’s lead and subject matter expert for customer billing operations, including integration of programs, rate changes, and other efforts implemented in conjunction with PG&E.
CEO Report Item 11
Christa has more than 16 years of experience working in the utility industry. Prior to EBCE, she worked for PG&E as a Senior Information Systems Analyst who was responsible for Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) support. She also has experience in PG&E billing operations and customer care.
Christa holds a BS in Information Technology and is a Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) and Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO).
Pulak Dugar - Data and Analytics Intern
Pulak joined EBCE on 7/3/23 as an Intern as part of the Data and Analytics team. Pulak will be responsible for moving a forecasting model for customers’ income levels into production, helping EBCE gain more complete data on their customers. He developed the model earlier this year along with three other students from the University of California at Berkeley with help from the Data and Analytics team, as part of Berkeley's Data Discovery program.
Pulak is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science at UC Berkeley.
CITY OF LATHROP, CA
San Joaquin County: Located between Tracy and Stockton Pop: 31,300 (2022)
Incorporated:1989
Major transit intersection: Interstate 5, 205, and CA State Route 120 Top three employers: Tesla, UPS, Army & Air Force Exchange Service Energy-related opportunities
Growing electricity load, particularly commercial & industrial sectors Interstate transit corridors for EV fast charging; light, medium, and heavy-duty fleets; and other transportation electrification projects Central location relative to agriculture, logistics, and shipping hubs 3rd fastest growing city in California (2021)
1 Tracy
Lathrop
Stockton
EBCE
enrolls new
customers
Community
Outreach
(with new
name and
brand)
EBCE
updates JPA
EBCE
considers
including
new
community
EBCE
conducts
analysis
Council
considers
joining JPA
Presentation
to City
Council
TIMELINE: LATHROP’S JPA MEMBERSHIP CONSIDERATION
2 March 2023 July 2023 In Process December 2023 2024 2025 3