Within the utilities sector, Enite services Water Utilities, Power Generation, Wholesale Trading & Marketing, Gas Transmission and Retail participants. Clients operating in this sector include Private Utilities, Public Utilities, Energy Merchants, and Retail Electric Providers (REPs). Summarized below are some of the current industry trends and issues our utilities clients are facing, and examples of how Enite can assist:

Rate Case Recovery Optimization

Few activities are more critical to the financial and operational success of privately owned or publically traded utilities than a positive outcome from a Rate Case hearing by the governing PUC. Yet, it is not uncommon for up to 10-30% of requested revenues in the form of rate adjustments to be delayed, questioned or denied in such hearings. We have done extensive studies to determine the cause of these problems and have developed and implemented processes to resolve them, resulting in more favorable outcomes and higher levels of trust and credibility with the PUC. Our process can maximize your prospects of a successful outcome to your current or next Rate Case. Many utilities wait until too late in the Rate Case preparation cycle to begin to address issues. However, we can make a significant difference no matter where you are in the cycle.

Reliability-Centered Maintenance (RCM)

Asset Management is one of the key responsibilities of all utilities. An approach to Maintenance Excellence that delivers extremely high levels of uptime and high quality system performance at a reasonable cost will allow utilities to generate required ROE while avoiding unnecessary downtime and extending the useful life of assets. Our approach to RCM utilizes proven best practices and a data driven approach to maintenance management that has been tested and proven in diverse environments such as pipelines, gas plants, refineries, pumping stations, and others.

Operational Risk

Market changes and business strategy adjustments drive utilities to continuously improve their capabilities or efficiency by adjusting the organization, processes, and/or technology.

Examples and Opportunities:

  • Dodd-Frank and CFTC regulation of over-the-counter derivatives
  • Preparation to meet requirements mandated by state & federal regulation on greenhouse gas emissions (e.g. – California Air Regulatory Board 2008, 12 other states to impose reporting needs by 2015)

Lean Six Sigma (LSS)

In today’s challenging regulatory environment, utilities are looking for reliable continuous improvement to remain profitable and achieve the financial and operational success needed to generate the ROE required to invest in their infrastructure. Many utilities are turning to LSS, a proven approach to consistently discover, develop, and deploy operational as well as process related improvements based on a rigorous, data driven, well tested methodology that also generates a high performance culture and environment. Our LSS Black Belts can begin by training Green Belts in your organization and follow them through an initial set of improvement initiatives to “kick start” your program and will stay with as long as required to ensure success.