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AVANGRID Has Delivered in New York and Connecticut With Reliable Power, Jobs and Partnership

We have been working closely with AVANGRID and its parent company, Iberdrola, since 2008. We also have been following the proposed merger in New Mexico. What the lone opponent – New Energy Economy (NEE) – is saying about AVANGRID’s performance in the Northeast is taken out of context and is grossly inaccurate.

Another thing to consider is the differences in the storms in the Northeast compared with the storms in New Mexico. Because of climate change and the number of large trees, the storms in the Northeast have gotten more treacherous leading to trees falling, power lines coming down and resulting in power outages. Unfortunately, AVANGRID’s utilities have been impacted as have all the others. But in contrast to what is being reported on in New Mexico, the AVANGRID utilities have outperformed all its competitors in both response times and rates of getting power restored due to these severe storm outages.

NEE touts at every opportunity the fines charged to AVANGRID. But what isn’t shared is that after severe storm outages, fines are assessed to ALL utilities. The duration of outages and the fines paid by AVANGRID are dramatically less than every other utility in the region.

FOR EXAMPLE, RESPONSES TO HURRICANE ISAIAS POWER ISSUES IN THE SUMMER OF 2020 RESULTED IN:

• AVANGRID’s Connecticut utility received a $1.2 million fine • AVANGRID’s New York utility received a $1.5 million fine

COMPARE THOSE FINES WITH THE OTHER UTILITIES IN THE REGION:

• Eversource Energy in Connecticut received a $28.5 million penalty • Con Edison received a $75 million penalty • Orange and Rockland Utilities received a $19 million penalty • Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corp. received a $16 million penalty

The other thing people aren’t aware of is the leadership and investment AVANGRID is making in the states where they operate. In New York, AVANGRID’s five-year capital expenditure plan for NYSEG and RG&E calls for a $4.7 billion investment. That includes $490 million to deploy 1.9 million smart meters throughout the service territories and $1.3 billion to improve system reliability and meet resiliency goals and objectives. AVANGRID continues to innovate while delivering beyond its original commitment to New Yorkers.

In Connecticut, when AVANGRID purchased UIL, the commitment was to add 150 jobs. In the six years since acquiring UIL, the actual job creation has been over 300 (more than double the original commitment).

When you consider the need for New Mexico to transition to an economy based on clean energy and protecting our natural resources for future generations, Iberdrola is truly a world leader and AVANGRID is a national leader. They have been on the national and international renewable energy stage for decades and are leaders in clean energy and wind development.

New Mexicans please don’t believe what is being said. We live and work in the Northeast and know first-hand the kind of company AVANGRID is.

Sincerely, George Pataki, Former New York Governor George Jepsen, Former Connecticut Attorney General Robert Klee, Former Commissioner of Connecticut’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection

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