Plugged In

Mother Nature can throw more at us than just hurricanes, heat waves, and Nor’easters. Sometimes major storms are from out of this world.

Monitoring solar flares is part of Con Edison’s strategy to make sure New York City and Westchester customers have continued reliable energy service.

Solar flares release clouds of charged particles that interact with the Earth’s magnetic field creating fluctuations in electricity, known as Geomagnetically Induced Currents (GIC). Con Edison uses special GIC sensors to monitor unusual currents and uses strategies like early awareness protocols, mobilizing local power reserves to support voltage and de-loading vulnerable transformers to protect them from overheating.

“Rain or shine, the sun ultimately calls the shots,” says, Michael Berlinger, a Con Edison meteorologist. “We can’t predict when solar flares are going to happen. But we can anticipate and predict their impact on our equipment once they occur and then do whatever is necessary to keep the power on.”

Solar flares are rare and cyclical. While solar activity has been quiet for the last few years, Con Edison recognizes that as with hurricanes, early warning capabilities and investment in technology will enable the company to take preventive actions to keep the power running.

New York City is under an extreme heat wave, learn about energy savings tips and how the scorching temperatures impact the electric system. We interview two experts who share their knowledge to help you beat the heat and save money.

In this installment of “Plugged In,” Scott Montgomery, an energy expert specializing in East Asia, shares his thoughts on whether the Trump-Kim summit may open opportunities for North Korea to rebuild its energy infrastructure, perhaps with help from China, South Korea and Japan. Montgomery is also a professor at the University of Washington in Seattle.

Plugged In 2018 Episode 3: Electric Vehicle Program by Plugged In Podcast

Con Edison teams up with Per Scholas to create new tech jobs.

The energy industry is going through a significant evolution. There is a growing switch to renewables such as solar, battery and other distributed energy resources, and in some cases, a new business model for the energy industry as well.

Con Edison and Orange & Rockland Utilities head to Puerto Rico to help restore power after Hurricane Maria nearly destroyed the island.

The crooks trying to take money from Con Edison customers have shown a new level of resourcefulness this year.

The scammers are calling customers and claiming they owe Con Edison a deposit for their smart meter. They then tell the customer to make an immediate payment by Bitcoin or the company will turn off their power.

These are lies. Con Edison does not require deposits for the smart meters it is installing at homes and businesses across New York City and Westchester County. The company does not accept payment by Bitcoin.

Con Edison does not call customers and demand immediate payment.

“These scammers take tens of thousands of dollars a year from our customers by sounding sincere while they lie,” said Jim Duggan, a manager in Con Edison’s Corporate Security department. “We want our customers to be able to recognize signs that someone is a professional criminal trying to steal from them.”

Con Edison is joining more than 100 electric, gas and water providers from North America in dedicating next week to educating customers on how they can avoid becoming victims. The companies, members of Utilities United Against Scams, have declared Nov. 11 to Nov. 17 to be National Utility Scam Awareness Week and next Wednesday to be National Utility Scam Awareness Day.

It's the time of the year when lots of us are making final preparations -- for vacations, graduations, weddings, and summer jobs. A big energy company like Con Edison is busy now too. Making final preps for what is the industry's busiest time of the year, summer, followed by storm season. We interview Con Edison's Senior VP for Electric Operations, Bob Schimmenti to learn about new technology and ways the NYC electric grid is ready.

Wonder Woman isn’t only fighting crime on the big screen this summer. She, and the other Justice League of America superheroes, are taking on criminals who pose as Con Edison employees in the newest storyline on our Con Edison Heroes app: https://www.coned.com/heroes/

Tune in to our latest podcast to learn why we’ve joined forces with DC Comics’ Justice League of America from Customer Operations Senior Specialist Chris Gallo and Diversity & Inclusion Director Nicole Leon.