Berlin electric utility Connecticut Light & Power is testing a notification system to alert impacted customers whenever an outage occurs and let them know when the lights will come back on.
CL&P’s Blue Sky Outage Initiative is part of a $30 million investment by parent Northeast Utilities for a management system designed to help its four electric subsidiaries to respond more quickly to outages and communicate more effectively during those events.
“Customers don’t like to be in the dark literally or figuratively,” said Penni McLean-Conner, NU senior vice president and chief customer officer. “We are going to push information out.”
On Monday, CL&P and NU’s Western Massachusetts Electric Co. began testing the system with an eye toward full implementation in January, said McLean-Conner.
Under Blue Sky, customers will receive a call whenever an outage occurs in their area, notifying them repair crews are in route and providing an estimated restoration time. After the restoration is complete, the customers will receive a second call saying the power is back on and providing details on what caused the outage and how long it lasted.
NU’s Boston-based subsidiary NStar will implement the system sometime in the first quarter. Its Public Service of New Hampshire subsidiary will receive the system after its outage management is updated.
The Blue Sky system is part of a larger effort by NU to increase its customer service and protect its system against major storms and outages. Other efforts include enhanced tree trimming and hardening infrastructure.
CL&P was widely criticized for its response to two major outages in 2011. A Public Utilities Regulatory Authority investigation into those events found CL&P was inadequate and deficient in its efforts and recommended the utility be fined by not being allowed to recover a portion of its restoration costs.
The ruling on the PURA fine is expected sometime in December. However, CL&P might avoid the penalty if the utility proved it significantly improved its outage response system.
