SJI further enhanced its infrastructure, made unprecedented investments in clean energy technologies, and added more than 12,000 new customers while improving upon the quality of our customers' and employees' experiences.
Advancing a Clean Energy Future
SJI's bold decarbonization initiative includes a 70 percent reduction of operational carbon emissions and consumption by the year 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2040. Our decarbonization strategy is focused on modernizing our infrastructure, expanding energy efficiency initiatives, and developing clean and renewable fuel sources. Importantly, we are also committing at least 25 percent of annual capital expenditures to sustainability projects.
Our pipe replacement programs play a major role in lowering operational emissions. Through Elizabethtown Gas’s five-year infrastructure investment program (IIP) and the completion of South Jersey Gas’s Accelerated Infrastructure Replacement Program (AIRP) and Storm Hardening and Reliability Program (SHARP), SJI utilities continue to replace hundreds of miles of older, leak-prone cast iron and bare steel mains with quality, long-lasting high-density plastic.
SJI’s new pipes not only reduce fugitive emissions, a key contributor of greenhouse gases across the gas utility industry, they also prepare our system for the clean fuels of the future.
Making Long-Term Clean Energy Investments
Through a new division of SJI Renewable Energy Ventures called SJI RNG DevCo, we broke ground in 2021 with our partner, Rev LNG, LLC on eight new renewable natural gas (RNG) production facilities at dairy farms in Connecticut, Michigan and New York. It was exciting to visit Oakridge Dairy, Connecticut’s largest dairy farm, and see first-hand how the technology used to repurpose agricultural by-products and other waste will enable us to utilize RNG as SJI helps meet the clean energy goals of our state and region.
Decarbonization remains central to our mission as shown by our investments in low carbon energy production facilities, including fuel cells and solar which came on-line in 2021. Additionally, in 2020, SJI and Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind entered a memorandum of understanding to explore the production of “green hydrogen,” a renewable energy source that can be blended with SJI’s supply to lower carbon intensity. And in June 2021, Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind received key regulatory approval for its proposed wind farm off the Jersey Shore.
We also secured our largest-ever regulatory approval for energy efficiency programs amounting to $216 million – helping customers save money, conserve energy, and reduce their carbon footprint. We are expanding programs for buying energy-efficient appliances, performing home weatherization and energy audit services, and launched a new online tool called Conserve on our South Jersey Gas and Elizabethtown Gas websites that provides tips on saving energy.
Committed to Diversity, Inclusion and Equity- Today and Everyday
New Jersey is one of the most diverse states in the nation, and SJI is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive environment. We value our differences and work together to better serve each other, our stakeholders, and the communities we serve. Through the work of our Diversity Council and growing SJI’s Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity Team, SJI laid out new diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives focusing on psychological safety, civic engagement and partnerships, and supplier diversity.
Our employee resource groups provide unique opportunities for our workforce to connect with each other, further their personal and career goals and serve the communities we call ‘home.’ From organizing food drives to cleaning up parks, our employees volunteer side by side, sharing their time and resources in meaningful ways.
We also take time to listen to our employees and celebrate our unique experiences and cultures through our Diversity Corner and other inclusion-focused initiatives.
Continuing to Act as One SJI
As a company, we faced challenges in 2021, from the ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic to storms that ravaged our service territory and affected our customers, communities and even our employees. But even in moments like the historic damage caused by Hurricane Ida, our employees came together and assisted each other through mutual aid. I can think of no greater demonstration of our commitment and character than critical moments like these.
In 2021, the SJI team answered over 500,000 customer service calls, responded to nearly 50,000 email inquiries and added over 12,000 new customers. Work like this is recognized not just internally, but also by those outside the company, including the recently announced J.D. Power awards, where Elizabethtown Gas was named Highest in Customer Satisfaction with Residential Gas Utility Service in the East among Midsize Utilities for the seventh year in a row.
Having two utilities rank in the top three in our peer group is an achievement shared by everyone in the company. Even more meaningful, this work was completed while staying within our safety targets – helping each utility earn the national distinction of “Industry Leader in Accident Prevention” by the American Gas Association.
The Path Ahead
As we continue to progress in 2022, we look forward to new opportunities with the acquisition of SJI by the Infrastructure Investments Fund (IIF), a private investment vehicle advised by a dedicated infrastructure investment group within J.P. Morgan Investment Management Inc. IIF is a trusted partner and long-term investor in utility and renewable energy companies. With this transaction, we will be well positioned to execute on our clean energy and decarbonization initiatives with additional resources to continue to modernize our critical infrastructure, maintain our high standard of customer service at reasonable rates, and further enhance the safety, reliability, and sustainability of our businesses.
In other words – at SJI, we will continue to meet our core objectives while positioning ourselves to Lead the Way to a Clean Energy Future.
Michael J. Renna
President & CEO
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