September 4, 2018
Rob Sowby, a water resources engineer at Hansen, Allen & Luce (HAL), recently published an article in Utilities Policy, a scientific journal covering governance, performance, and analysis in the utility industry.
In the article, “Comparison of Operational Energy Requirements in Publicly and Privately Owned U.S. Water Utilities,” Dr. Sowby concludes that privately owned water utilities, contrary to economic theory, do not use less energy than comparable public ones, even after considering their size, water source, and climate setting.
The finding suggests that neither type enjoys any inherent energy advantage by virtue of its ownership and that energy management policies and practices should address public and private water utilities equally. All water utilities, regardless of ownership, can benefit from energy management.
The research is based on Dr. Sowby’s dissertation at the University of Utah.