John Bruckner spoke about what National Grid is doing to provide better service for its customers.
In his presentation, Mr. Bruckner said that National Grid US has 4 million gas and electric customers and has 8,000 employees (4,000 of them work in downstate New York). In addition, New York businesses represent 60% of National Grid’s US presence.

National Grid is investing $3 billion between 2017 and 2019 to modernize and enhance the resiliency, reliability, safety and capacity of its natural gas system, which includes replacing 585 miles of aging gas pipelines. In addition, the utility currently has a new state-of-the-art gas control center on Long Island and two major liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities in Holtsville and Greenpoint to meet the demand on peak winter days.

Mr. Bruckner discussed two major projects: the Rockaway Lateral and Newtown Creek. For the former, National Grid is looking to tap into the lateral off the Rockaways and deliver the gas to Long Island. That project is currently in its permitting stage and is awaiting approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. For Newtown Creek, Mr. Bruckner said he is looking for deliver renewable energy sources, such as biogas, which can be produced at the Newtown Creek’s wastewater facility.

Other new facilities include a best-in-class gas control center located in Melville, a Consumer Advocacy Center in Brentwood and the MetroTech Sustainability Center. These new facilities, Mr. Bruckner said, are focused on safety, customer satisfaction and cost.

In 2016, National Grid launched its Neighborhood Expansion program, in which National Grid customers would get their neighbors to sign up with the utility and convert to gas. It started in East Hills and has since expanded to Dix Hills, Hampton Bays, East Islip and Stony Brook. In East Hills, 1,000 customers were connected, resulting in more than $1 million in energy savings.

Mr. Bruckner added that National Grid is taking part in New York’s 80×50 Challenge, in which the goal is to reduce greenhouse gases by 80% by the year 2050, and REV (Refining Energy Vision), another state initiative to make a “greener” economy by creating more renewable energy sources; the No. 1 issue concerning this initiative, Mr. Bruckner said, is affordability.

National Grid has also been involved in the community and the educational sector, according to Mr. Bruckner. Some of the schools and organizations in which National Grid is involved include Brooklyn Technical High School, Stony Brook University, Girls Inc., Energy Tech and the State University of New York.