Central Hudson’s energy efficiency programs and incentives continue to reduce energy use across the Mid-Hudson Valley, according to the utility company.
In 2023 alone, energy efficiency measures taken by Central Hudson’s customers saved an annualized 54 million kilowatt-hours of electricity and more than 80,000 decatherms of natural gas. Since 2009, these programs saved households and business more than $107 million in energy costs, avoided nearly 1.3 billion pounds of greenhouse gas emissions annually and reduced energy demands by enough to power 64,600 homes for a year.
This year, Central Hudson received the 2024 ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year Award for Sustained Excellence from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Energy. It is the seventh consecutive year Central Hudson has been recognized by the Energy Star Program and the third year receiving the highest honor of sustained excellence.
The Central Hudson residential lighting program incentivized 988,401 ENERGY STAR certified LEDs and saved 2,832 MWh in 2023. More than 5 million ENERGY STAR certified LEDs have been incentivized since 2016, and more than 128,000 MWh have been saved. Central Hudson was also recognized for promoting and incentivizing the purchase of ENERGY STAR® certified smart thermostats, electric heat pumps and heat pump water heaters.
“We are honored to receive the 2024 Energy Star Partner of the Year award,” said Central Hudson President Steph Raymond. “Our team’s dedication to helping customers incorporate sustainable practices not only contributes to a healthier planet but also exemplifies the core values of our organization.”
To support these initiatives, Central Hudson continues to invest in the electric and natural gas systems to modernize the energy delivery infrastructure and enable expanded use of clean resources. State-of-the-art equipment and systems are being deployed to improve the efficiency, durability and reliability of the energy delivery system, and to reduce emissions. These improvements are also critical to integrating the growth of distributed resources such as solar and battery storage.
Central Hudson also protects the environment through its operations, for example by reusing and recycling tons of materials through a partnership with Ulster-Greene ARC started more than 30 years ago; reusing and retreading tires for its fleet; and operating three hydroelectric plants to produce local renewable power to supplement the energy needs of its customers.
