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Explore resources and get educated during National Energy Awareness Month
Each year the U.S. Department of Energy designates October National Energy Awareness Month. In observance of the month, entities across the country encourage businesses and residents to take action to adopt energy-wise practices by doing everything from following simple tips to reduce energy use to considering and making an investment toward their broader sustainability goals.
For those interested in becoming more energy efficient but who aren’t sure where to begin, utilities are often a one-stop-shop, with a wealth of resources. Here in Kentucky, the commonwealth’s two largest utilities, Louisville Gas and Electric Company and Kentucky Utilities Company, have a full portfolio of programs and information for customers.
“We take our role as energy provider and an energy advisor to our more than 1.3 million customers across Kentucky seriously,” said LG&E and KU Vice President of Customer Services Eileen Saunders. “Our goal is to empower customers with information to help them make educated decisions about how they’re using energy. And because we know many of our customers are interested in taking their efforts further, we’ve worked to create the renewable energy offerings they’ve expressed an interest in.”
LG&E and KU’s Business Solar Program creates customized solar arrays for businesses, on-site at their location. Photo furnished
Solar offerings for every customer
The utilities’ Solar Share Program is just one of the renewable options available to LG&E and KU customers. The subscription-based program is a cost-effective option available to LG&E and KU’s residential, business and industrial customers who want to support solar energy for as little as 20 cents per day. By participating in the program, customers get the benefits from solar energy without having to pay the added up-front and long-term expenses that come when installing and maintaining a private solar system.
The utilities’ completed the fifth section of the Solar Share facility, in Shelby County, Kentucky, earlier this year. When fully completed, the facility will have a total of eight sections and produce a total of four megawatts. Large customers like Ford, non-profits like the Center for Women and Families and Habitat for Humanity and government entities, like the City of Lexington, are among the program’s more than 2,800 participating customers across the utilities’ service territories.
For businesses interested in customizing a solar array on-site at their location, the utilities’ build, own and operate facilities for customers through the Business Solar offering.
Support renewables equal to 100% of your energy use
LG&E and KU customers interested in investing in an amount of renewables equivalent to their energy use can explore the utilities’ Renewable Choice Calculator. The calculator is accessible on the LG&E and KU website. Using a few details entered by the customer – including customer type and average monthly bill – the calculator uses the utilities’ Solar Share Program and Green Energy Program to provide a solution that enables most customers to support renewables at a level that is equal to 100% of their power consumption for less than $1 per day or about 5% more on their monthly energy bill.
Louisville’s Muth’s Candies is supporting 100% renewables through solar and wind after using LG&E and KU’s Renewable Choice Calculator. Photo furnished
Deciding to drive electric
Exploring the potential to make the switch from a gas-powered to electric vehicle is another area of interest customers can get educated about through information provided by their utility. LG&E and KU’s website offers information on EV charging stations, including the utilities’ 20 publicly available EV charging stations across Kentucky. They also provide information on charging from home and offer businesses the opportunity to host charging stations of their own.
The utilities’ Marketplace website has a section devoted to vehicles. Drivers can check out data on more than 2,300 conventional, hybrid and electric vehicles and see side-by-side comparisons on criteria that interest customers most. The site also provides a one-of-a-kind efficiency rating and lifetime costs to compare options to help customers decide if purchasing an EV is the right choice for them.
Visit lge-ku.com/sustainability to learn more about the utilities’ full portfolio of renewable energy programs and how LG&E and KU are empowering sustainability in Kentucky.