Connect Up: Business

The PUD’s Connect Up program will deliver an array of new benefits for business owners, helping them better monitor their energy usage and make big changes to save money. Connect Up will give commercial customers new options to take control of their energy usage, provide on-demand service and save money through new rate designs.

The PUD will begin exchanging commercial and industrial meters in mid-2024. Commercial customers will receive a 90-day letter making them aware of the upcoming exchange. PUD commercial customers cannot opt-out of the PUD’s Connect Up program.

Most commercial customers will not experience a power outage, but there is a possibility that some will experience a brief interruption of electrical service due to the exchange. The PUD aims to make the process as convenient as possible and appreciates customers’ patience.

Here’s a look at some of the new benefits:

Detailed energy usage: Business owners will receive detailed insight into how much energy they are using in 5-minute increments on their bill and through their MySnoPUD portal. Customers can use that information to make more informed decisions to save energy.

Flexible billing: Commercial customers will be able to choose their billing date range, due date and eventually take advantage of pre-pay options to better align their billing with revenue.

Same-day meter service: Real-time remote reconnect and disconnect for customers means no longer having to wait for a truck/field worker to be dispatched to your business.

Less Carbon Emissions: Remote meter reading and connect/disconnect means fewer PUD cars and trucks on the road emitting greenhouse gases.

No more bills based on estimates: Customers will no longer receive the occasional monthly bill based on an estimated read as Connect Up will make meter reading easier and more efficient. Today, estimated bills can occur due to weather or access issues.

The benefits below will not be available immediately, but the PUD has plans to enact them in the near future:

Outage detection: Though not available Day 1, customers will eventually no longer have to call in their outage as the new meters will alert the PUD that an outage has occurred. This capability will improve the PUD’s outage response and decrease restoration times.

New rate designs: Business owners will eventually be able to save money or earn bill incentives by taking advantage of new rate designs and shifting their energy usage to off-peak hours.

EV charging rates: Commercial customers who own fleet electric vehicles will be able to take advantage of cheaper rates by signing up for time-of-day rate designs and charging their fleet vehicles at off-peak hours.