E3 Success Story - Reducing Electrical Demand in San Antonio, TX

CPS Energy

CPS Energy, the nation's largest municipally-owned electric utility, has a goal of reducing 9 megawatts of electrical demand from the San Antonio manufacturing sector by 2020. To help achieve this goal, CPS Energy partnered with the Texas Manufacturing Assistance Center (TMAC) and the Southwest Research Institute to provide lean, clean and energy efficiency training, as well as resources and tools, to help manufacturers located within San Antonio implement opportunities that increase efficiencies in energy and materials use. The training and on reviews were conducted by Texas Manufacturing Assistance Center (TMAC) manufacturing specialist Carson Miller.

The nine facilities that participated in the program in 2009 are expected to save more than 2 million kilowatt-hours of electricity annually—that's enough electricity to supply 2,500 homes in San Antonio for about a month. This also translates into about 1,400 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions reduced, or about the amount emitted from nearly 300 cars on the road for a year. TMAC estimated that the facilities will save $300,000 annually and could recover the capital costs associated with implementing the improvements in an average of under two years.

The identified opportunities could result in the following:

• $2,365,000 in annual savings
• 3,132,000 kWh of electricity saved annually
• 1,400 metric tons of CO₂ reduced
• average payback period of less than 2 years

"We're proud to implement an energy-efficiency program that gives manufacturers a competitive edge by reducing energy costs. Initiatives like lean, clean, and energy efficiency can help attract more businesses to Greater San Antonio and build a sustainable future for our community."

— CPS Energy CEO Milton Lee