[{"_1":2,"_109":-5,"_110":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87,98],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6654862,"mediaKeyId","5442472-53329833348584ea4907f6024cb55422","parentId",5442472,"title","Overhead distribution resiliency study recommends reclosers, data cleanup and phased program to reduce outage impacts","audioSeconds",678,"startMs",3028000,"endMs",3706000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5442472-53329833348584ea4907f6024cb55422&start=3028&end=3706","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5442472-53329833348584ea4907f6024cb55422/thumbnail_3028000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6654862/Austin/Travis-County/Texas/Overhead-distribution-resiliency-study-recommends-reclosers-data-cleanup-and-phased-program-to-reduce-outage-impacts","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6654862-3f5520c44bb3177c3311611d18b581c8/orig.mp4?Expires=1770420103&Signature=EpKS5ISQhvAiZGOCik1m~uSpQN0IHYNVNwfEla16hxTIqKMVG0dIWR~IQhaAuKBHVjyuArGkzgIqcFeMbUShhJud3sMYvva7zhv7n2i4OLEOFZYS~pfFSsmyy-qBI1UqRlAWLecTI9ep7BZgY0iZrhKseBPhmv~9s1YuMIhOBHFkd7FA1C3vTksM1vSBgtSFm8-hIamJM9Cr32xTCj5pNIm0tRsAKu51VyVxs1vio0OtMtMKLTsM3kAUuRcmECWu4U1FX71ES3PBmi07rAICD-9DU3IpHpK418Bq-270HEvcGKlzKPs9lm3DAf6SRx1iSIg-yff5o5EudEDuMQYM5g__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Austin","date","2025-07-22T00:00:00Z","article","Consultants from Burns & McDonnell's 1898 practice presented the results of an overhead distribution resiliency study to the Austin Energy Utility Oversight Committee on May 28, recommending a phased program of near-term device deployments and a longer-term enterprise program to improve reliability.

Michael Cody of 1898 told the committee the study analyzed Austin Energy's 5,000 miles of remaining overhead distribution and recommended an approach that emphasizes targeted infrastructure replacement and sectionalization rather than full undergrounding. \"We identified over 600 mainline reclosers and over a thousand lateral reclosers, which gives Austin Energy options,\" Cody said. Reclosers are devices that can isolate faults on a feeder and reduce the number of customers who lose power during an incident.

The consulting team performed three tasks: an \"as‑is\" systems assessment, detailed feeder coordination studies to evaluate protection and automation device placement, and a future-state planning effort. The as‑is review found Austin Energy's distribution equipment broadly compliant but flagged aging assets and 14 substations nearing operational limits for further evaluation. The consultants identified opportunities to expand load-shed flexibility, improve data integration and clean customer- and equipment-level data, update distributed-energy-resource hosting practices, and refine public guidance on hosting and connections.

The feeder studies prioritized lateral device placements based on vegetation density, historical outages, customer counts and line length. The consultants said adding reclosers and improved sectionalization would reduce fault impact, speed restoration and enable further grid automation. The study produced both \"moderate\" and \"aggressive\" deployment options and emphasized that the choices need to be aligned with budget and implementation timelines.

Austin Energy staff told the committee the overhead study complements a recent underground-feasibility study, and that leaders are drafting a comprehensive distribution resiliency plan that will combine existing reliability programs, underground options and the overhead recommendations. David Tomchessen, Austin Energy vice president of electric system engineering, said the combined information will let staff compare underground versus overhead and moderate versus aggressive approaches on a feeder-by-feeder basis.

Council members asked about targeted alternatives to undergrounding where undergrounding is not financially feasible. Staff said the study's results are structured to allow side‑by‑side comparisons of underground and overhead options and that overhead measures can often be deployed faster. Members also discussed vehicle impacts on poles, wildfire risk in certain corridors and coordination with transportation and public‑works departments for roadway and lighting projects.

Staff said they will use the study results to draft a living distribution resiliency plan, will provide a list of the 24 resiliency initiatives on request, and plan to return to the council later this year (targeting approximately November) with the full plan and budget recommendations. The utility noted an initial budget entry of roughly $10 million for FY2026 actions growing to about $20 million per year within the first five years; staff said estimates will be refined as the plan is finalized.

","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Austin - Austin Energy Utility Oversight Committee - Jul 22, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","Consultants from Burns & McDonnell's 1898 practice presented the results of an overhead distribution resiliency study to the Austin Energy Utility Oversight Committee on May 28, recommending sectionalization and targeted device deployments to reduce outage footprints.","taxTitle","Austin, Travis County, Texas","taxId",2819,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6654867,"Austin Energy says carbon-free share down to 65% amid congestion, highlights battery and solar pipeline",638,1570000,2208000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5442472-53329833348584ea4907f6024cb55422&start=1570&end=2208","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5442472-53329833348584ea4907f6024cb55422/thumbnail_1570000.jpg","/articles/6654867/Austin/Travis-County/Texas/Austin-Energy-says-carbon-free-share-down-to-65-amid-congestion-highlights-battery-and-solar-pipeline","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6654867-feb9e8d4f47af9b2d0c825de70a779cd/orig.mp4?Expires=1770420103&Signature=ksdrj4wYjicpdcYXmi-eKFDxyK65BKIEpteYDwGAEDtRaMDdCurTAH3kuYpU-aiGM48D5J7-y2onlrgMIF7YFfc5tmD7ceAehJ6bKMF0FKMG-g7tIv4KZZTAHq2z4cOzA98h7MV-fp076Yz6m5~Mqmz28qjrcwTTzqiD1cPOGPFtP96vwBLdZSpdnxgohmQef6Vh0Jjj9kDVa5gtZQAgvJvI6beyjsl1lB2bbOoT31026BeYFZhDpxbcfd8d7~6FDcSQZJC0u~A2YgUIHau~E1KNThn7uS5unV-Z3WeBxwUKVsajF0u2UTLR9PQryhP~gUSjY01oYPJ1rZbJWOdK8w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Lisa Martin, Austin Energy chief operating officer, briefed the Austin Energy Utility Oversight Committee on May 28 on progress toward the utility's 2035 resource generation and climate protection plan.

Martin said Austin Energy's carbon-free percentage of load is currently about 65%, down from a high in 2022. She attributed the decline to transmission congestion, curtailment of resources and demand growth, noting that local solar and battery projects and import capacity increases are among the tactics intended to raise the carbon-free share again. \"Our carbon free resources aren't going as far these days due to those factors,\" Martin said.

Martin reported progress on several plan goals: 844 megawatts of cumulative energy-efficiency capacity (about 86% of that goal), 28 megawatts of thermal-energy storage toward a 40 MW target, and 48 megawatts of demand-response capability toward a near-term 78 MW goal. She said Austin Energy is near its 2027 battery goal of 125 megawatts once a pending contract is executed.

\"We are bringing to you a contract for authorization for 100 megawatts pending your approval and final negotiations,\" Martin said, identifying Jupiter Power as the counterparty in an item on a forthcoming council agenda. She said a second potential battery contract remains under discussion and, if concluded, would help reach or exceed the 125 MW target.

Martin described the 2024 DNV Energy Insights study, which estimated that customer energy-solution (efficiency and demand-response) spending would need to more than double — from roughly $32 million in 2025 to about $69 million annually by 2035 — to meet achievable savings. She said some goals in the generation plan were intentionally aggressive and that the utility would balance ambition with cost-effectiveness.

Council members asked about federal funds for Solar for All and other programs. Richard Genesee, vice president of customer energy solutions, told the committee that \"all indications are to date\" that grant funding for the Solar for All program will continue and noted Texas's $250 million federal allocation within a larger competitive award. He added that the program operates on a reimbursement model and funds must be spent over five years.

Members also raised the impact of recent federal tax-law changes on residential solar economics. Martin and Genesee said Austin Energy is evaluating changes to incentives — including the possible need to adjust local incentives — as federal residential solar tax credits are reduced or eliminated in coming years. Genesee said participation trends have shifted, with large national providers pulling out of some utility incentive programs and a smaller share of residential jobs receiving incentives.

Martin and council members discussed demand response as a challenging portion of the plan because it requires customer enrollment and engagement. Martin said the utility is expanding commercial demand response — including adding more than 150 city facilities representing roughly 6.4 MW — and that demand response and battery programs are complementary.

Martin also listed a set of uncertainties affecting procurement and supply chains: changes to federal tax credits (discussed in the briefing as a legislative change affecting production and investment tax credits for wind and solar beginning in 2028), foreign-entity-of-concern restrictions, and broader geopolitical supply-chain issues. She said the utility is continuing procurement work and intends to bring evaluation, measurement and verification consultant contracts to council in the coming months.

The committee did not take formal action on the plan update during the briefing. Martin said staff will continue program launches, pursue pending contracts, and return with required council items and further updates.

","Deputy GM Lisa Martin told the Utility Oversight Committee the utility is at 65% carbon-free as a percentage of load, cited transmission congestion and curtailment as drivers, and said a 100 MW battery contract with Jupiter Power is on a pending council agenda item.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":91,"_47":92,"_49":93,"_51":94,"_53":95,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":96,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":97,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6654871,"Austin Energy reports full restoration after May 28 microburst; estimates $6.5 million in immediate costs",0,3481000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5442472-53329833348584ea4907f6024cb55422&start=3481&end=3481","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5442472-53329833348584ea4907f6024cb55422/thumbnail_3481000.jpg","/articles/6654871/Austin/Travis-County/Texas/Austin-Energy-reports-full-restoration-after-May-28-microburst-estimates-65-million-in-immediate-costs","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6654871-e4433210bc8f7424720e8691a66abe40/orig.mp4?Expires=1770420103&Signature=fJIxYkSNYDcPkLBjBfAOcZLcFMTg1U1zPVjvQII2PrGj1PT0T-H5mBu8zbQhhtYQU-nTQnx1nuS49FxdPzz1X7zG7qlQmL-J7ZNQ4hXEHZnDoCZ16Q0HG99SjjBuKALvjcDJdGQJX1ujr69ZwePMqE~bSP7gHtGjf76~9hblBVcemKbe8x5kItVv1Efag2G3K98q8C2MpoDO8tlqtrZNaySdzxGMNQPfn8GPgV3MauujcJLAoGka1t4bAKP8lcSTUa1DrMAqrAdeNXTmyxf1DrBX9KIrElXVm9Td~KcmnBnqPZlW6yWklQ9AWqIpOG9hYE57eY-9XOuvgw9g4txj4A__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Interim General Manager Stuart Riley told the Austin Energy Utility Oversight Committee on May 28 that Austin Energy restored power to all customers after a microburst storm that struck the city on the evening of May 28.

Riley said the event produced a rapid spike in outages — a peak of about 72,500 customers were without power at one time — and that 124,000 unique customers were without power at some point during the restoration. \"We had 91 power poles that we replaced, 52 transformers, 32,000 feet of overhead cable,\" Riley said. He added that Austin Energy, contract crews, and mutual aid providers put nearly 1,000 people into the field during the response and that initial response costs are estimated at $6,500,000, a number he said is likely to rise as mutual aid invoices are finalized.

The storm brought short, intense rainfall, hail, high winds and lightning concentrated in a west-to-east band across Austin, Riley said. He described damage ranging from uprooted trees and roofs torn off homes to a transmission-line strike near Longhorn Dam when a construction-barge crane was pushed into a line and required helicopter work to repair.

Riley described a phased restoration approach used during the response. Phase 1 focused on restoring critical loads and mainline circuits — hospitals, first-responder locations and critical communications — to reestablish the system backbone. Phase 2 moved crews onto lateral lines affecting neighborhoods, prioritizing by number of customers and age of outage. Phase 3 addressed isolated outages down to single-customer service drops and transformer-level repairs. \"During phase 1, we need to focus our restoration activities on getting critical load customers back online,\" Riley said. He added that the Department of Sustainable Development (DSD) helped expedite permitting for required customer-side work.

Riley said Austin Energy implemented newly introduced incident-management processes and pre-drafted mutual-aid contracts during the response and is conducting a May microburst after-action review that will be completed in October. The utility also conducted multiple community outreach events and used targeted texts, emails and social media to keep customers informed.

Council members praised field crews and Austin Energy communications. Councilmember Harper-Madison said clearer communications improved public patience during outages; Councilmember Duchin and others noted challenges reaching customers with drained devices and suggested continued outreach and redundant communications, including preparedness pop-ups that provide batteries and hand-crank radios. Riley acknowledged the challenge and said Austin Energy has been incorporating redundancy and door-to-door outreach into preparedness and recovery efforts.

Questions from the council touched on budget impacts and federal reimbursements. Riley and other speakers said Austin Energy budgets a contingency — cited at roughly $20 million in a multibillion-dollar budget — to cover emergency events, but that reimbursements (for example from FEMA) are uncertain. \"We're not optimistic\" about the future of some federal reimbursements, Riley said, and noted that storm costs can erode cash reserves while the utility bridges expenses.

The committee did not take any formal action on the storm response during the meeting; Riley said the utility will report back with the after-action findings and implementation steps.

Less critical details included that Austin Energy's outage map handled higher traffic better than in prior storms after upgrades, and that one transmission repair required helicopter work. The after-action report is expected in October and the utility said it will continue refining mutual-aid contracts, damage-assessment processes and phased restoration communications.

","Interim General Manager Stuart Riley told the Austin Energy Utility Oversight Committee that crews restored service to all customers after a May 28 microburst that at peak affected about 72,500 customers. Initial response costs are estimated at $6.5 million; the utility will complete an after-action report in October.",{"_33":99,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":100,"_41":101,"_43":102,"_45":91,"_47":103,"_49":104,"_51":105,"_53":106,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":107,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":108,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6654857,"Committee approves May 20 minutes unanimously",2201,1280000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5442472-53329833348584ea4907f6024cb55422&start=1280&end=3481","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5442472-53329833348584ea4907f6024cb55422/thumbnail_1280000.jpg","/articles/6654857/Austin/Travis-County/Texas/Committee-approves-May-20-minutes-unanimously","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6654857-e7cf8ef26c91281d023f616233fe5f6d/orig.mp4?Expires=1770420103&Signature=b53bODCX-M~T-BIfeR~csLlz91XLj6olGi2EH6L~trgsSVyFkzi84LcikRTwRKf~kKCRROSrh5SPOwHNmJKpGSbTds-ikyLpxBDQrX7vsq2YClTWZC3CSvSeAviKbtZVxW0zPvoaaZ7~XktJNeK9mrD9zZjAMd-1fOPp~a6GVde53e06N9z47ZQTnvoL-FwM0km8hG7yA~Vw-7cC4MWKKHSOcG3Pa9q7mAEJP6sOujrZsYOIGxMmtd1KGyaag7We04ZuFt7xHNZ1rMO0SnKxSCCdngxiQkjvi3JC2oKVe4K2Xd9Vhty6fwwgSYt5VC4W7Rb1LhX-kB57iIgNs0cl3Q__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Austin Energy Utility Oversight Committee opened the meeting with a motion to approve the minutes of the May 20, 2025 meeting. Committee member Duchin moved to approve the minutes; committee member Ryan Alter seconded. The chair called for those in favor and the committee recorded unanimous approval by hand-raise.

The committee did not record an individual roll call vote on the minutes during the meeting.

","The Austin Energy Utility Oversight Committee approved the minutes from its May 20, 2025 meeting by unanimous hand-raise at the start of the session.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Overhead distribution resiliency study recommends reclosers, data cleanup and phased program to reduce outage impacts

Austin Energy says carbon-free share down to 65% amid congestion, highlights battery and solar pipeline

Austin Energy reports full restoration after May 28 microburst; estimates $6.5 million in immediate costs

Committee approves May 20 minutes unanimously