Next Phase Of PSEG’s Clean Energy Program Approved In New Jersey

NEWARK, NJ — State authorities in New Jersey recently approved the next phase of PSE&G’s “clean energy” blueprint.

According to PSE&G, the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) has given a go-ahead for its Clean Energy Future - Energy Efficiency II Program, which will span from January 2025 to June 2027.

The program aims to “save energy, reduce utility costs and lower carbon emissions,” the Newark-based utility company said.

Here are some things to know about the next phase of the ongoing program, according to PSE&G:

GOALS/BUDGET – “This initiative aims to help achieve the New Jersey clean energy annual reduction targets of 2% in electric usage and 0.75% in natural gas usage set forth in the 2018 Clean Energy Act and the NJBPU’s energy efficiency framework orders. Over the next six years, the program will include an investment budget of $1.9 billion, net of administrative expenses, and provides nearly $1 billion of funding to continue the popular on-bill repayment program, which supports affordability and allows customers to repay the cost of equipment upgrades over time directly through their PSE&G bill.”

REPLACING FOSSIL FUEL EQUIPMENT, LOWERING DEMAND – “This new cycle will fund 10 programs aimed at helping residential and business customers reduce their energy usage, bills, and carbon footprint, while supporting economic growth in New Jersey… Specifically, eight of these programs will focus on continuing to deliver PSE&G’s comprehensive suite of energy efficiency offerings, while two new programs will target building decarbonization and demand response. The building decarbonization program aims to incentivize the installation of heat pumps and other electric measures to replace fossil fuel equipment, thereby advancing efforts to decarbonize homes and businesses. Meanwhile, the demand response program will encourage customers to reduce electric consumption during peak demand periods and help them manage their overall usage to support the reliability of the electric grid.”

BENEFITS – “The combined energy savings for participants are expected to generate gross lifetime bill savings of approximately $4 billion, as well as societal benefits such as providing targeted support to low income and overburdened communities, and the avoidance of nearly 10 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions.”

JOBS – “PSE&G projects that these investments will create and sustain approximately 3,500 direct jobs annually in sectors such as equipment installation, technology services and clean energy.”

Since its launch in 2021 through June 2024, PSE&G's CEF-EE I programs have seen some big milestones, the company reported:

“As of the latest reports, nearly 400,000 customers have participated in energy efficiency initiatives and are collectively projected to save more than $500 million annually on their energy bills. The program conserved 2.3 million megawatt-hours of electricity—enough to power nearly 335,000 homes—and avoided approximately 1.7 million metric tons of carbon emissions, equivalent to removing nearly 375,000 gasoline-powered cars off the road per year. Additionally, the Clean Energy Jobs Program has helped place over 2,600 individuals in clean energy careers.”

“By helping lower carbon emissions across the state, this initiative reflects our commitment to a sustainable energy future where people use less energy that is cleaner, safer and delivered more reliably than ever,” PSE&G president and COO Kim Hanemann said.

• See Related: PSEG Asks NJ Regulators To Approve $306M For Clean Energy
• See Related: ‘Clean Energy’ Fuels PSE&G Hiring Push In Newark
• See Related: PSEG Says Its ‘Energy Efficiency’ Programs Are Working In New Jersey

Send local news tips and correction requests to eric.kiefer@patch.com. Learn more about advertising on Patch here. Find out how to post announcements or events to your local Patch site. Don’t forget to visit the Patch Newark Facebook page.