Related News
Related News
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EWEB Communications Win National Recognition for Public Power Excellence
We’re excited to share that EWEB has again been honored with two Excellence in Public Power Communications Awards from the American Public Power Association (APPA), earning top honors in both the Web/Social Media and Video categories.
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2025 rate update: Less than Initially Forecasted
While the costs of producing and delivering electricity and water are rising, EWEB is actively working to reduce the financial impact of rate increases in 2025.
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EWEB Launches 2024 Residential Customer Survey
EWEB has again partnered with professional research firm, GreatBlue Research, Inc., to conduct a survey of residential customers, starting October 30, 2024.
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Imagine a Day Without Water 2024
Learn how you can prepare for an extended water outage.
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Smart meters make UO move-in easier
Automatic move-in service order processing makes signing up for electric service easy for UO students and the entire Eugene community, while keeping utility vehicles off the road and lowering carbon emissions.
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EWEB to Mitigate 2025 Rate Increases to Reduce Customer Impacts
Amid a turbulent energy landscape and rising costs, EWEB has reduced projected rate increases for electricity and water in 2025.
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EWEB Partners with the City and YMCA to Celebrate New Amazon Park Emergency Water Station Site
Hundreds of attendees practiced filling up water containers at Saturday's demonstration event.
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EWEB Communications Team Wins Top Awards at Northwest Innovations in Communications Conference
Competing against public utilities from across the region, EWEB brought home two significant awards in recognition of our work to engage and inform the community.
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September is National Preparedness Month: 3 tips to prepare your home & family
Let's "Be Ready" together!
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EWEB invests in preparedness for severe weather and natural disasters
Just as you take steps to safeguard your home and family, EWEB is investing in equipment and processes to ensure our community’s electric and water systems remain reliable in the face of adversity.
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EWEB customers achieve remarkable results in environmental stewardship through EWEB's Lead Green programs
Subscribers of EWEB's Lead Green programs helped reduce carbon emissions in 2023 by 730 metric tons of CO2e.
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EWEB explores rate increases to cover rising costs and to modernize infrastructure
Amid rising inflation and other challenges, rate increases are necessary to maintain reliable utility services and fund critical investments in Eugene’s water and electric infrastructure.
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EWEB prepares for rising energy demand as weekend heat wave arrives
Electricity supply is sufficient for now, but new supplies will be necessary in the years ahead to keep pace.
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EWEB preparing for expected surge in electric vehicles
Electric vehicle (EV) sales are poised to skyrocket in the years ahead as technology improves, more models hit the market, prices fall and regulations limit the sale of gas-powered vehicles. And EWEB is preparing for this surge.
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EWEB bids a fond farewell to College Hill Reservoir and prepares for modern drinking water storage tanks
Several hundred Eugene residents came together on May 30 for a Farewell Celebration at EWEB’s College Hill Reservoir before demolition and construction to build modern drinking water storage tanks begins later this year.
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EWEB Publishes February Snow Storm After Action Report
April 15, 2019
Following the devastating ice storm that struck Eugene in December 2016 , EWEB has focused on emergency preparedness and disaster recovery as a strategic priority. Building on lessons learned from that storm, we implemented new processes and procedures to restore power more efficiently and improve the information we share with customers. The February 2019 snow storm that dumped 18-plus inches of snow gave us an opportunity to test those new processes and procedures in a multi-day event affecting thousands of customers. In our continuing pursuit of providing exceptional customer service during emergency situations, EWEB staff once again analyzed the utility's performance, noting points of success and identifying areas for continued improvement.
Event Overview
The February 2019 snow storm tested the resiliency of the EWEB electric system, utility staff and our customer-owners in Eugene and the McKenzie River Valley. The storm event caused devastating damage to communities and EWEB's electrical infrastructure, totaling $4.3 million in restoration costs (updated from the initial estimate of $3.5 million). In all, over 15,000 homes experienced at least one outage during the event, with the cumulative outages adding up to more than 20,000. The bulk of customers had power restored within nine days of the initial snowfall, with only very minor staff and public safety incidents.
Restoration Statistics
- 10 days in emergency incident response
- 20,000 cumulative outages
- 15 line crews
- 10 tree crews
- 300 EWEB staff involved in efforts
- 18 poles and 163 cross arms replaced
- 43,000 feet of wire replaced
- 30 transformers replaced
- Estimated cost of $4.3 million (updated from initial estimate of $3.5 million)
Performance Summary
The report details a number of notable successes, including the focus on safe work practices and hazards assessment, which resulted in no major incidents and few minor injuries. In addition, the training and process efforts EWEB completed in 2017 and 2018 to build on the lessons learned from the ice storm proved to be beneficial, resulting in minimal idle-time for crews and more efficient restorations.
While our performance showed marked improvement when compared to the 2016 ice storm response, there is room for continued enhancements. The report details concrete and actionable lessons-learned and recommends the utility continue to invest in resourcing, systems and tools that aid in an efficient emergency restoration response.
Further refinement of existing processes, additional staff training and added bench-strength in particular roles are needed to close the gap between outage incident time and restoration time.
This continued attention to emergency preparedness and the resiliency of the electric system will aid EWEB and customers in protecting life and property in future winter storms and other potential disasters.