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Lake Worth Beach electric utility reports higher July sales, flags PCA shortfall and explores AI and storage
Summary
Electric utility staff told the commission July electric sales are running about 5–6% above last year, credited staff with awards for reduced outage durations, and outlined AI workshops and battery storage studies while noting an aggregate PCA shortfall near $1.2 million.
City electric utility leadership reported system strengths and near‑term financial pressures during the July 28 commission meeting. The electric utility said July sales were running roughly 5–5.8% above the prior-year month and year‑to‑date electric sales were about 3.5% above plan, driven by unusually high degree days.
The utility director (recorded as Liberty) highlighted team recognition: the department received an outage‑duration award after reducing the system average interruption duration index to 39.6 minutes for calendar year 2025. Liberty also described internal artificial intelligence workshops aimed at identifying productivity improvements and urged public participation before procurement. “We view these things as productivity improvements... almost a force multiplier,” Liberty said.
Staff also described two initiatives under consideration: battery energy storage being discussed with FMPA for regional applications (sited in the Keys) and investigation of storage co‑located with solar projects. Liberty warned that storage equipment prices and supply constraints are limiting near‑term options.
On finance, Liberty acknowledged the city is running an aggregate PCA (fuel/commodity recovery) shortfall—about $1.2 million when operating-account and stabilization balances are netted. He said revenues are coming in strong and staff projects improvement before year‑end but that variability (e.g., prolonged nuclear outages or high gas prices) can change projections. Commissioners asked for more detailed briefings on rate design, PCA dynamics and potential hedging or storage strategies.
