Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — The American Samoa Power Authority is the recipient of the Community Service Award from the American Public Power Association (APPA) and the aware is one of the three recognitions received by ASPA this year.

The community award was announced June 19 during an awards ceremony at APPA’s National Conference in New Orleans, Louisiana.

ASPA is one of the three utility providers (the other two on the US mainland) that received the award which “recognizes utilities for their ‘good neighbor’ activities that demonstrate commitment to the local community,” according to an APPA news release on June 19.

“We are excited and truly honored to receive this award,” said ASPA executive director Utu Abe Malae, in an ASPA news release last Friday announcing the award. Utu congratulated the ASPA team for their work and “for being good community service members.”

ASPA said its Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) initiative was highlighted at the national conference in New Orleans. It says that the multi-pronged effort includes in-school work with students and teachers, career day presentations, professional development training for schoolteachers and other community members. The program aims to inspire the next generation to be STEM-ready and build the utility’s future workforce.

The STEM Initiative, community wellness program, and island-wide clean-up are some of the programs that help ASPA build strong relationships with the customers and community.

RELIABLE PUBLIC POWER PROVIDER

In another news release, also last Friday, ASPA announced it has earned a Platinum Level — Reliable Public Power Provider (RP3) from the APPA for providing reliable and safe electric service.

"This is a great honor," said Utu. "We take a lot of pride in the work we do to power this community. We are very happy to get this recognition for our initiative and hard work."

Neil James, Manager of Distribution Operations at ‎Santee Cooper, South Carolina and chair of the APPA’s RP3 Review Panel, presented the designations on April 30 during the Association’s annual Engineering & Operations Technical Conference held in Raleigh, North Carolina.

“This designation is about more than just reliability. It’s about operational excellence,” said James is quoted in the ASPA news release. “These utilities and their communities should be proud to represent the best of the best in the areas of reliability, safety, workforce development, and system improvement.”

The RP3 designation, which lasts for three years, recognizes public power utilities that demonstrate proficiency in four key disciplines: reliability, safety, workforce development, and system improvement.

Criteria include sound business practices and a utility-wide commitment to safe and reliable delivery of electricity. ASPA joins more than 240 public power utilities nationwide that hold the RP3 designation.

More information on APPA online: www.publicpower.org

TOP 10 UTILITY LIST BY SEPA

In a third news release, ASPA said it been named as one of a select group of utilities that connected the most solar or the most storage to the grid in 2017, earning it a spot on the annual Top 10 utility industry lists compiled by the Smart Electric Power Alliance (SEPA).

In survey results released Apr. 25, ASPA ranked No. 6 on the Utility Energy Storage Rankings of Annual Watts-Per-Customer Category, with 20.4 watts-per-customer installed in 2017. The 2018 listings are the second time ASPA has made SEPA’s Top 10. (More info online: www.sepatop10.org)

"This is truly a collaborative effort with the American Samoa Renewable Energy Coalition (ASREC)," said Utu, noting that the Ta'u Solar Hybrid and Ofu Solar Hybrid projects are the beginning of renewable projects with energy storage as ASPA works towards the Renewable Energy Target of 100% for American Samoa by 2040.

SEPA president and chief executive officer, Julia Hamm is quoted in the ASPA news release saying that this year's Top 10 lists reflect a pivotal moment in the U.S. energy transition, as utilities increasingly focus on solar and storage as distributed resources providing value to customers and the grid.

“Beyond its impressive numbers, ASPA embodies a strong model for innovation and leadership that utilities across the country will continue to build on as we move toward a clean, smart and resilient energy future,” Hamm said.