As we approach the peak of hurricane season, we’ve already seen above-average storm activity during a year that is unusually challenging for our members.

While this year’s weather may seem especially daunting, Union Power is ready for any storms that come our way. And our ongoing efforts to make the electric grid more flexible, efficient, and resilient will also help ensure your power is as reliable as possible, no matter the weather.

We can’t completely prevent outages, but advances in technology are making our systems more resilient and enabling us to respond to storm impacts and restore power more quickly. Advanced Metering Infrastructure, commonly known as smart meters, provides two-way communication between your home or business and our cooperative, letting us know if your power is out. These meters can help you monitor and manage your energy use. They also help us better control demand for electricity across the grid, resulting in more reliable and affordable power for everyone.

Electric cooperatives across the state are also implementing microgrid innovation that provides added power resiliency and reliability. These small, localized systems bring together various components, including renewable energy like solar power or biogas, battery storage, smart thermostats, and water heater controls to produce electricity. North Carolina’s electric cooperatives currently have five microgrid projects either in operation or under development. As a statewide network, we are working together to continue using them in additional ways to better serve our members.