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Schneider Electric/nationwide, telecommute

Summit Energy, a subsidiary of Schneider Electric, is the leading provider of sustainability services for business and industry. Leveraging its industry-leading DashboarDView platform, Summit provides client companies with subscription and project services, including those related to tracking and reporting GHG emissions, environmental, health and safety services, energy efficiency support, and clean energy alternatives in industries – ranging from aerospace and automotive to government, chemical, food manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, healthcare and others. Summit's unique blend of people, process and technology combine to deliver an industry leading sustainability Software as a Managed Service (SaaMS) solution. Its growing staff of more than 800 sustainability and energy professionals is headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky. Summit has additional offices in the U.S., as well as Mexico, South America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific. Summit serves clients globally and supports client sites throughout the world. For more information, visit www.summitenergy.com.

Position Summary:

The Client Development Manager-Sustainability will focus on closing the sale of Summit's sustainability related services to NEW industrial and commercial clients to Summit Energy. This position will report directly to the Vice President of Sustainability Development. This effort will involve identifying, pursuing, qualifying, and closing potential clients headquartered throughout North America. Qualified candidates can be located out of any Summit or Schneider Electric office in the U.S., or operate from a virtual office in areas outside those locations.

The primary responsibilities, character traits, skills, and requirements are listed below.

Character Requirements:

• Integrity: demonstrates this in all interactions
• Initiative: recognizes and acts on what needs to be done without being asked
• Honesty: transparent in the interactions with other employees, prospects, clients, etc.
• Leadership: proven track record of effective leadership in a sales role
• Persuasiveness: ability to work through challenges to achieve results

Position responsibilities:

As a Client Development Manager – Sustainability, your chief responsibilities will be to:
• Identify prospects that match the profile of Summit Energy Services in the carbon, energy, energy efficiency, environmental, sustainability, or clean energy marketplace
• Generate and follow up on leads by making contact with prospects and creating interest in Summit's offerings
• Communicate and interact with business decision makers at all levels to identify needs and requirements as well as market opportunities
• Lead and move prospects through the sales cycle
• Negotiate and close sales that vary in contract length and fee range
• Close an agreed upon number of sales and revenue per year
• Maintain prospect (CRM) database information
• Other responsibilities as assigned

Essential skills, qualifications and requirements:

• Quality experience selling professional services in the sustainability industry, energy industry, service industry, environmental industry, or to industrial and/or commercial clients; experience and knowledge from working within the energy, sustainability or environmental industry is a must. Experience is selling enterprise software solutions and services is a plus.
• Proven track record of being successful in all elements of a consultative sales role
- Demand / lead generation
- Persistence in follow up of leads and movement of prospects through the sales cycle
- Interfacing and presenting to all management levels at Fortune 500 companies
- Proposing, negotiating and closing business with qualified prospects
- Demonstrated effective close rate with prospects
• Prior experience working with complex sales cycles that can at times last 6 months or longer
• Prior experience selling high within an organization (C Suite)
• Strong closing ability; past experience closing $100,000+ deals
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Computer literate in a Microsoft Office environment (i.e. Word, Excel, Outlook)
• Some travel required to support sales activity (up to 50%)
• Bachelors degree required

Benefits:
• A growing company with a positive industry reputation
• Recognized leader in a market where energy services are in demand
• Entrepreneurial company with a positive corporate culture
• Competitive salary with significant commission opportunities
• Benefits which include 401(K), Commission Plan, health, life, dental, vision insurance, short and long term disability, tuition reimbursement, and more

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I was driving my red Chevy Volt to work the other day when I noticed something. Just ahead of me, and one lane over, was — another Volt! My heart raced. I sped up, and pulled alongside the other car. The stranger in the black Volt saw me and grinned. We waved to each other, and nodded knowingly. He rolled down his window, and motioned for me to do the same. Our brief conversation — through the sounds of rolling tires and whooshing air, and no engine noise at all — went something like this:

“Hey!”

“Hey!”

“Isn’t this great?”

“Yes! Totally!”

“Other people just don’t get it, ya know?”

“I know! I know!”

“Traffic!”

“Oh! Right. See ya!”

With a hasty thumbs-up, we raised our windows and went our separate ways.

Such chummy exchanges are commonplace among the small but growing number of people who have ditched internal combustion in exchange for a vehicle that can be plugged in. Current options include the Volt, the practical Nissan Leaf, the jaw-dropping but expensive Tesla Model S, and a few others.

Enthusiasm and camaraderie among plug-in vehicle owners are high. Very high, in fact. Constantly frustrated by hearing others’ silly misconceptions of our electric vehicles, and dismayed by the oily misinformation that saturates media coverage of our beloved cars, we turn to one another for sanity and support. To us, the rest of the world just doesn’t get it. And we wish you did. On behalf of misunderstood electric-car fanatics everywhere, I’d like to explain a few things. Buckle up; here we go.

First, electric driving is dirt cheap. Electricity is about five times cheaper [PDF] than gasoline. Skeptical? Let’s compare. How much do you spend on fuel to drive 10,000 miles? For a gasoline car, you’ll typically need about 400 gallons, which costs around $1,500. For an electric car, you’ll need about 2,600 kilowatt-hours of juice, which costs around $300. Of course, your results may vary.

The cost difference has implications for daily driving. If my family goes out to dinner, we can use 40 cents worth of electricity with my Volt, or $2 worth of gasoline with my wife’s Honda CR-V. The Volt is more fun to drive than a gasoline car anyway, so the decision is always a no-brainer.

Second, we think electric vehicles will eventually trump gasoline cars in the marketplace. Sure, sales of plug-in cars are still small — representing about half of 1 percent of new car purchases in December 2012. But sales of current models are growing, and several new models are appearing throughout 2013. Aggregate monthly sales of plug-ins are triple what they were this time last year, and similarly rapid growth is positioned to continue.

Economies of scale will bring down prices of plug-in cars over time, and cheaper and better batteries are on their way as well. As electric-car prices go down and their capabilities go up, somewhere there will be a tipping point where gasoline cars become obsolete. Remember a few years ago, when flat-screen TVs became cheaper, and no one bought the old CRT clunkers anymore? It’s like that. The tipping point is getting closer. Bye-bye internal combustion, and good riddance.

Third, when gas prices go up, we don’t feel sorry for you. I still buy gas occasionally, since the Volt uses gasoline for long-distance trips. I fill up the tank roughly once every three months — which is just often enough for me to remember how to do it. In my world, the “problem” of high gas prices is already solved for good, and “gas stations” are mostly places to buy snacks.

In contrast, those around me complain endlessly about the cost of gasoline. One Facebook friend (whom I hope is not reading this) posted a livid, politically charged rant after spending $70-something to fill up his vehicle. Oh, please. He’s probably driving a gigantic gasoline-powered SUV to convey himself and his briefcase to and from work. Which part of that expense is someone else’s fault?

In his 2006 State of the Union Address, George W. Bush spoke of America being addicted to oil. I couldn’t agree more. The cost of the addiction is huge — with the average American household spending around $4,000 on gasoline in 2011. And the $4,000 figure doesn’t even count indirect costs, such as the long-term costs of CO2 emissions, and the added burden to our military to protect our supply. (And, um, wars.) Much like a person with an addiction to crack or whatever other drug, the oil-addicted society becomes fiscally challenged, angry, and a little bit crazy. And like other addictions, the problem is ignored — or even loudly denied — by the addicted.

To some, the solution is to drill more oil wells to try to push the worldwide markets toward cheap gasoline. The economic argument doesn’t work as well when you consider that oil is sold on a vast worldwide market. But here, too, the addiction analogy gets right to the point: “Crack is too expensive,” says the crack addict, “so we should solve this problem by opening up more sources of crack.” Yes, my SUV-driving friend — that is what your argument sounds like to me.

Fourth … OK, maybe I got carried away. And maybe likening you to a crack addict was a bit much. I was just trying to get your attention. In fairness, I know that plug-in cars are new, so most of you hardly know they exist. The purchase price of electric vehicles is still high, and the selection of models is still limited. And used plug-ins for sale are nowhere to be seen. I get all that. Also, it is smart to wait until a new technology is more established before putting down your hard-earned dough. I admit that my Volt purchase was something I would have put off for a year or two if my purchase were motivated purely by practical considerations instead of by desire. So you gas-car drivers out there deserve more sympathy than I am giving you. Sorry. My bad.

And fifth, let’s look into the future. A few years from now there will be a lot more electric cars around, and our smugness will be bolstered by even higher gas prices. And in that near future, all of the reasons for not buying a plug-in car will have vanished — or nearly so. When that day comes, any lack of sympathy we have for you will be perfectly justified. We will mock you, and you will have no defense. I just thought you’d like to know what’s coming. I’m only telling you this because I care.

I’m glad we had this little talk. Cheers, and happy driving.

Filed under: Article, Business & Technology, Climate & Energy

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Summit Energy, subsidiary of Schneider Electric/Louisville, KY

Summit Energy, a subsidiary of Schneider Electric, is the leading provider of sustainability services for business and industry. Leveraging its industry-leading Resource Advisor platform, Summit provides client companies with subscription and project services, including those related to tracking and reporting GHG emissions, environmental, health and safety services, energy efficiency support, and clean energy alternatives in industries – ranging from aerospace and automotive to government, chemical, food manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, healthcare and others. Summit’s unique blend of people, process and technology combine to deliver an industry leading sustainability Software as a Managed Service (SaaMS) solution. Its growing staff of more than 850 sustainability and energy professionals is headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky. Summit has additional offices in the U.S., as well as Belgium, France, Mexico, United Kingdom and The Netherlands. Summit serves clients globally and supports client sites throughout the world. For more information, visit www.summitenergy.com.

The Manager of Sustainability Services will be expected to function as an operations and technical leader for Summit’s Sustainability services in the Americas region. This individual will act as a key manager of client services delivery for the team and will also help support new business development and champion services among external and internal clients.

Position responsibilities:
• Manage and coordinate sustainability team, resources and deliverables with focus on quality, efficiency and scalability of operations within the Americas region
• Mentor and coach team members on sustainability subject matter, deliverables and nurture team’s professional growth and development
• Provide strategic and technical leadership on client programs involving large cross-functional and extended teams; accountable for elements of client relationships and associated retention
• Work and coordinate service delivery with multi-disciplinary teams and organize sustainability team activities accordingly
• Develop and oversee training programs and resources for both internal and external clients
• Oversee rigorous quantitative and qualitative analysis of empirical data
• Solicit client insight and provide strategic contribution to the overall product/service line strategy and roadmaps
• Support strategy, programs and tactics to continue integration of sustainability into internal and external business functions including Schneider Electric
• Help identify and support new business development opportunities related to sustainability; routinely support and lead sales meetings with prospects in support of sales teams
• Contribute to creation and implementation of new market content in support of service evolution and business development
• Establish networking and support partnerships with regulatory, NGO, trade association and other prevalent groups in support of business
• Accomplish staff results by communicating job expectations; planning, monitoring and appraising job results; coaching, counseling and disciplining employees; coordinating, and enforcing systems, policies, procedures and productivity standards.

Essential skills and qualifications:
• High commitment to company vision and values
• Bachelors Degree in a qualifying field (Environmental Studies, Sustainability, Engineering, Business Administration, Corporate Responsibility)
• 6 – 8+ years of related experience, including project management experience
• 3-5+ years experience managing and leading a team
• Established history of managing professional relationships at multiple levels of a client organization
• Proven track record in developing, managing, and executing successful corporate policies and programs
• Ability to communicate, both written and verbally, complex analysis and ideas in a concise manner
• Analytical self-starter with strong attention to detail
• Strong organizational and problem-solving skills with the ability to work on multiple complex projects in diverse areas
• Proficiency with a variety of technology tools including Microsoft products and custom software systems

Non-essential skills and qualifications:
• Masters degree in an analytical field or MBA
• Experience preparing and facilitating technical workshops or seminars

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Pacific Gas & Electric Co./San Francisco, CA

Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation (NYSE:PCG), is one of the largest combined natural gas and electric utilities in the United States. Based in San Francisco, with 20,000 employees, the company delivers some of the nation's cleanest energy to 15 million people in Northern and Central California.

PG&E’s Energy Procurement (EP) organization procures a reliable energy supply to meet the electricity and gas demands of our customers 24 hours a day. We reduce customer costs and attain stable prices through contracting and financial hedging instruments and in doing so, maintain a focus on sustainability by supporting environmentally-preferred resources.

EP's Contract Management (CM) team ensures that PG&E and its counterparties remain compliant with all energy contract provisions, both for contracts that are actively delivering energy and for new facilities under construction. We manage hundreds of procurement contracts, including renewable and conventional electric, and biogas contracts, resource adequacy contracts, as well as associated transmission and financial hedging agreements.

We are currently looking for a Sr Energy Contracts Management Analyst in our San Francisco office. The ideal candidate for this position has an aptitude and desire for understanding the energy procurement business, energy contracts, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions transactions, and related data/information.

For more information and to apply, please visit www.pge.com/careers and refer to position #50506669.

Pacific Gas and Electric Company is an AA/EEO employer that actively pursues and hires a diverse workforce.

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Stantec.
CA – California, Irvine
Overview: Our Environmental Services (ES) group is dedicated to managing environmental issues professionally and proactively. We provide integrated, multidisciplinary services to identify and assess liabilities and risks, and to develop…

Salary: . Date posted: 08/01/2012

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The Tesla Model S: Finally, an electric car that Nicolas Cage can drive through an explosion. (Photo by Tesla Automobiles.)

One night a few weeks ago, while on a Honda junket in Santa Barbara, I had dinner with a couple of Japanese green-car technology engineers. I realize that, in terms of cool cred, that statement ranks far below “I just got back from Burning Man” or “have you seen my TED talk?,” but I was still excited. I guess I’m a green-car nerd now.

After a weird moment where one of the engineers compared my beard to a bonsai tree, we began to discuss shop. I’ll admit that I didn’t understand everything they said to me, but here’s the gist: Honda puts its best engineers at work on developing alternative-fuel cars. And they’re not the only ones.

In the past year, as part of my strange new career as a car writer, I’ve driven everything from the most exalted Rolls-Royce to the lowly ScionIQ, and what pisses me off most about the cars I drive is their gas mileage. Why does that Infiniti only get 19 mpg, or that Mustang convertible 17 mpg? What’s with all these big, stupid crossover vehicles that cost 80 bucks a week to fill? Frankly, it’s pathetic.

I’m hoping that manufacturers might also be feeling the shame, and also pressure from their governments. Eventually, your average consumers might even start thinking alternative-fuel cars are cool, too.  Look at the hoopla surrounding Tesla Motors’ recently released Model S “supercar.” It goes 3,000 miles per hour, approximately, and a recent Motor Trend test-drive in the desert showed it has an electric range of more than 250 miles. A change is coming. You should see these electric cars that BMW is putting out next year, the i3 and i8. They look like superhero cars from the future. I want one so bad.

While it would be wonderful if the entire world would just travel around on magnetized super-trains, the fact is, many people have to drive every day. Some of them have to drive quite far. So the way the car companies behave in the next 20 years will help determine the fate of our planet. I’m beginning to see encouraging signs.

BMW’s i8: Practical, but only if you’re going somewhere you won’t need roads. (Photo by BMW.)

For years, Honda’s been leasing out a hydrogen-fueled car for about $600 a month to discriminating California consumers. In a more mainstream gambit, the Honda Accord, a boring college-town sedan for decades, is about to appear in a plug-in hybrid version. The Honda FIT EV, though poorly available, gets more than 100 miles to a charge, and everyone I’ve talked to who’s driven it thinks it’s fantastic.

And Honda has to double-down on electric cars so it can catch up to Toyota. The Prius is one of America’s most popular cars, and Toyota’s adding more EVs to its fleet constantly, including a new plug-in Prius that gets a modest 12-15 miles per electrical charge. Toyota just introduced a hybrid Camry, which I drove and thought was pretty good, and an all-electric RAV4, which blew my mind when I drove it in July. I had it for five hours solid and there was still plenty of range left when I was done zipping it around Newport Beach.

Of course, Japanese and Korean automakers were working on this stuff back when we were chatting on AOL and enjoying the first season of Survivor. But now there’s also  a little-reported alliance among General Motors, Chrysler, Ford, BMW, Mercedes, and the Volkswagen group. Their engineers are jointly developing alternative fuel technologies, which they must because Europe is adopting very rigid fuel standards in 2017. The U.S. will follow by 2025, assuming that it continues to elect federal executives that believe in the reality of global warming. The new U.S. CAFE standards (which unfortunately do not ban café-based spoken word nights — an initiative I also support) will bring the average mpg  of cars up over 54, though it will probably be closer to 40 once all the evil oil lobbies munch their chunks off that. Regardless, it’s a big change from the current situation.

And now a confession: I try to enjoy combustion cars for what they are, especially if they go vroom really fast. People love them for a reason. They can be fast, fun, and often quite useful. But they have to change. I feel like, and I may be overly hopeful here, that I’m enjoying the last moments of a technology before it’s swept away by historical reality.

Ford C-Max: “Not everything can be an insectoid robot with lasers from 3030, OK? Some people just want more headroom!” (Photo by Ford.)

Of course, I also might be totally fooling myself. That awesome RAV4 I drove? Toyota’s only going to sell or lease 2,500 of them, and all in California. Same with Honda’s Fit EV. The Prius continues its unstoppable march toward segment dominance, but other alternative-fuel cars are struggling. The Chevy Volt, a fantastic car by any standard, is offering $259-a-month leases on cars that cost $40,000 last year. I haven’t driven the new Ford C-Max hybrid series, but everyone seems to love it a lot. Enthusiasm aside, the C-Max still warrants the usual “will people buy it?” caveat, an addendum phrase that seems to haunt the world of alternative-fuel cars. Consumers aren’t yet persuaded, except in rare West Coast pockets, and the infrastructure doesn’t yet exist to support alternative-energy cars en masse.

To those of you who still might be saying “the technology isn’t good enough yet,” I would say: You’re wrong. It’s definitely good enough. And to those who are reluctant because of price, fair enough. But the electric Model T, a car that will change the way the world drives, is coming. I don’t know what that model will be yet, or from what factory but regardless, this automotive Messiah will rise.

That said, even EV geniuses get the need for speed from time to time — and for that, burning carbon is still optimal. After a long dinner and much wine with my new engineer friends from Honda, one of them leaned in and said, “I have worked on every kind of fuel technology for cars,” he said. “And I am convinced that combustion engines work best.”

This surprised me, but he assured me that it was true. Though the world needs alternative-energy cars for its future survival, he said, racecars need to continue to run on gasoline. I agreed, for now. Watching electric cars race isn’t much fun — yet. That Model S goes pretty damn fast.

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Pacific Gas and Electric/Stockton, CA (San Joaquin County)

Company

Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation NYSE:PCG), is one of the largest combined natural gas and electric utilities in the United States. Based in San Francisco, with 20,000 employees, the company delivers some of the nation's cleanest energy to 15 million people in Northern and Central California.

Pacific Gas and Electric Company is an AA/EEO employer that actively pursues and hires a diverse workforce.

Department Overview

Sustainable Communities, within Energy Solutions and Service (ES&S) Operations, delivers a holistic offering to local governments focused on sustainable energy management and
Greenhouse Gas (GHG) reduction.

The Sustainable Community Energy Manager (CEM) will serve as the lead PG&E representative on community-wide climate action planning, working with local government leadership and relevant community partners. This approach will include the assessment of emissions and energy usage across all major sectors within San Joaquin County. The Sustainable Community Energy Manager (CEM) also provides sustainability-related support and expertise to internal customer-facing teams at PG&E, in particular with local presence strategies and energy management within the Small/Medium Business sector.

Note: This position will be assgined to the Stockton Customer Service Office. Final location headquaters will be determined during final selection.

Position Summary

PG&E is seeking a highly motivated, self-driven individual, passionate about sustainability, with clear vision and a knack for blazing their own trail. The ability to blend and reconcile the goals and desires of multiple stakeholders, while being sensitive to internal and external political environments will be critical. CEMs will support and partner closely with multiple groups within PG&E including Energy Solutions & Service (ES&S) Account Executives, Government Relations and the Government and Community Partnership Team.

The work will include a mix of office time, community field meetings and some travel. Occasional weekends and evening work may be required for community/ regional community events.

Qualifications

Minimum

• Bachelor’s degree in business, environmental, technical or related field
• 6 years of relevant work experience (sustainability work, energy/ government-related work)
• Valid driver’s license and willingness to use personal vehicle for reimbursed company mileage

Desired

• Specialized knowledge of and experience in sustainability strategy, communications and customer motivations
• LEED AP and knowledge/ experience with green building, reach codes and related regulation
• MA in engineering, environmental management, sustainable business management or similar
• Ability to apply portfolio-based consultative sales skills and technical skills to understand, explain and recognize opportunities to work with energy end use systems and efficiency
measures/techniques
• Excels in a team environment and models a collaborative spirit
• Strong interpersonal, communication and presentation skills
• Strong sense of awareness and savvy in political situations
• Coachable and committed to continuous learning
• Maintains professionalism and humility in dealing with team members and clients
• Strong critical thinking and problem-solving orientation (out-of-the box solutions)

Responsibilities

• Relationship Management: Maintains collaborative relationships with local government sustainability leaders, business and community leaders, and internal PG&E teams. Speaks at/
attends local community events in support of the overall energy/ sustainability plan.
• Data Analysis and Strategic Planning: Analyzes community-wide energy and carbon emission data in an effort to identify cost-effective reduction strategies. Collaborates with Local Government, community leaders and stakeholders to develop energy vision.
• Project Management and Performance Tracking: Partners with community leaders to implement agreed upon carbon reduction strategies/ campaigns, monitoring performance and providing status reports. Leads and monitors internal cross-functional collaborations and services supporting community climate goals. Provides feedback to the community, collaborative marketing and
recognition.
• Subject Matter Expertise: Provides centralized technical support to customer-facing teams with advanced knowledge of sustainability matters important to PG&E customers and pertinent to achieving PG&E’s corporate goals. Supports Account Executive’s work with assigned customers, to encourage participation in energy efficiency programs as part of a community scale sustainability effort.
• Internal Coordination: Leads and coordinates innovative service solutions for local governments and their communities using network of internal PG&E and external resources. Partners with multiple PG&E departments to provide integrated services.
• Compliance and Safety: Work safely and in compliance at all times with legal, regulatory and ethical standards. Fully utilize PG&E’s Customer Management Tool (CMT) and other systems to document and report all

If interested please visit our careers page at www.pge.com/careers and reference job number job number # 50646410.

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Stantec.
CA – California, Irvine
Overview: Our Environmental Services (ES) group is dedicated to managing environmental issues professionally and proactively. We provide integrated, multidisciplinary services to identify and assess liabilities and risks, and to develop…

Salary: . Date posted: 08/01/2012

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A version of this article originally appeared at Sightline Daily.

Photo by Michael Edson.

I’ve been thinking about upgrading to an electric car for awhile now. And in today’s market, there are plenty of models to choose from.

But having a lot of options makes for a complicated decision! Each model of electric car has its own unique mix of efficiency, charging time, and driving range — and since buying a car is a big decision, I want to find the model that makes the most sense for my family. To add to the confusion, there doesn’t seem to be any single, unified source of information on the many electric car options out there.

So, for my own convenience — and hopefully yours — I pulled together a table with basic stats on the major electric and plug-in hybrid cars:

Click to embiggen. (Sources include the manufacturers’ websites, Wikipedia, FuelEconomy.gov, and Motor Trend Magazine.)

What I took away from this research is that there’s no “perfect” choice among the EVs on the market. They’re all far more efficient in electric mode than gas-only models. That means less money spent on fueling your car, and lower levels of greenhouse gas emissions for each mile driven. But whether you’re willing to pay a premium for a longer range, a faster charge, or a higher top speed seems like a personal choice that I can’t help you out with.

But at least you now have the numbers. Happy comparing!

And now for the notes and caveats:

• I’ve restricted my search to electric and plug-in hybrid sedans that can carry at least four people — which is what my own family needs most days of the week — and to cars that are either on the market right now, or are expected to be offered later this year, in at least some part of the Pacific Northwest. I decided not to include a couple of cars — the Coda and the Toyota RAV4 EV — that are only being sold in California right now. If I’ve missed some cars, let me know in comments and I’ll be happy to update the table!

• MPGe stands for “miles per gallon equivalent” — which is how the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the efficiency of electric vehicles.

• I sorted the models by base MSRP (manufacturer’s suggested retail price) minus the maximum U.S. tax credit allowed for that model. But note that you only get the full tax credit if you actually owe that much in federal income tax! Also, I decided not to include the cost of installing an in-home 240-volt charger in the vehicle price, since people with ready access to a public charging station might not need one.

• Some of the figures above are estimates, rather than official figures. I did my best, but unfortunately you may need to check the official figures as they’re released.

• The Honda Fit EV isn’t actually available for sale yet. A limited run will be leased to customers in Oregon and California beginning this summer. I’ve included its MSRP price (with tax credit) for comparison’s sake, but folks who lease a Honda Fit aren’t even allowed to buy it after the lease is over. That means that the price I quote is sort of irrelevant at this point.

• Retail deliveries for the Tesla Model S are scheduled to begin in June, but it looks like the smaller-battery models won’t be shipped until late 2012. I wasn’t able to find solid data on 120-volt charging times on the Tesla website, and the 240-volt charging time estimate can be cut in half if you buy an optional “twin charger” for $1,500. The Tesla website quotes a 300-mile range for its 85-kilowatt-hour (kWh) model … but recently announced that its range is 265 miles under EPA’s new test cycle, which, as a reader pointed out, could mean that the ranges for the 40- and 60-kWh models may be slightly overstated — thus the asterisk.

• The MPGe figures for the Prius Plug-in and Chevy Volt are for electric-mode only. The Volt gets 37 mpg in all-gas mode, and the Prius gets 50 mpg.

• And as a reminder, the differences in MPGe in all-electric mode are actually quite small. As we’ve written a number of times, miles-per-gallon math is actually quite deceptive: Differences at the low end of the mpg scale matter much more than do differences at the high end of the scale. So the difference between the top performer (the Honda Fit, at 116 MPGe) and its closest rival (the Mitsubishi MiEV, at 112 MPGe) is actually quite small.

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A version of this article originally appeared on CleanTechnica.

Utilities in the United States are shifting away from coal toward sustainability initiatives, electric vehicles, and clean technology — but uncertainty about pending regulation continues to loom large, and environmental efforts may significantly hike consumer rates.

These findings come from “Strategic Directions in the U.S. Electric Utility Industry,” a survey of more than 500 utility executives conducted by industry consulting firm Black & Veatch (B&V). The annual survey [PDF] is intended to predict how the utility industry will evolve over time.

[Editor's note: We reported highlights from the survey earlier this week on Grist. Here's a a deeper look into the report.]

Coal on its way out

Coal‘s fall from favor among utilities, compared to 2011, is the survey’s most significant finding. The percentage of respondents who said they saw a future for coal in the U.S. “when all fiscal realities are fully considered” plummeted from 81.5 percent in 2011 to 58 percent in 2012. An additional 17 percent said coal only had a future overseas, and 15 percent replied coal “is rapidly fading into the past.”

All charts courtesy of Black & Veatch.

Environmental regulation is a key driver in this massive shift. While carbon emissions legislation has consistently ranked as the top environmental concern of utilities in B&V surveys since 2009, rule-making activity by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2011 likely added to the negative outlook toward coal. Fifty-four percent said EPA regulations would cause early retirements among coal-fired plants, while 67 percent said the potential classification of coal ash as hazardous waste would have a moderate to significant impact on utility operations.

Natural gas dominates, but for how long?

Of course, the impact of America’s shale gas boom on coal’s outlook can’t be ignored. Nearly 80 percent of respondents said natural gas is now economically viable without any subsidies or incentives and “is clearly the preferred technology to replace coal.” However, this situation is expected to change.

More than 81 percent of survey respondents predicted natural gas prices will rise significantly from the current price of about $2 per million British thermal units (MMBtu), with 60 percent predicting natural gas will cost between $4 and $8/MMBtu by 2020. The main drivers for this price increase are environmental concerns from fracking and wastewater, decreasing domestic supplies, and EPA regulations.

But as the price of natural gas rises, coal may rise from the dead, just like in any zombie movie. A recent analysis pegged $2.75 as the price point where utilities convert coal-fired generation to natural gas, which unfortunately means natural gas may not rule for long.

Sustainability grows within business models

Fortunately, the survey reveals sustainability initiatives continue to grow as an important aspect of the utility business model. Twenty-eight percent of all respondents said sustainability considerations have a very strong or strong level of influence on their planning, with another 35 percent saying they have a moderate level of influence.

The importance of sustainability is largely tied to perception among customers, regulators, and analysts. When given a choice, survey respondents ranked local public image, social responsibility image, regulatory relations, and investor perceptions well above actual financial performance or debt issues.

Electric vehicles surging, renewables not so much

Utility executives are looking beyond theoretical sustainability to actual economic opportunities in clean technology — 67 percent said significant financial opportunity existed for utilities in the green economy. While positive in a broad sense, specific implications of this support vary.

Respondents predicted electric vehicles would surge to 7 percent of their total load by 2025, and 52 percent indicated they would fund actions to accelerate electric vehicle (EV) market penetration. If realized, this expected increase would mean 65 million EVs on the road — quite a jump from today.

Renewables didn’t fare quite as well. While 62 percent of respondents said renewable portfolio targets in their territories were achievable, 90 percent said such rules would lead to higher rates for customers. In addition, 90 percent said they would be integrating renewables into their systems by 2015, but only 38 percent said they would represent more than 10 percent of total generation.

However, solar energy remained a bright spot, ranking as the top renewable technology across all geographic regions, and 42 percent of utilities said they are starting to integrate systems to allow greater distributed generation from renewables.

At least they’re planning for climate change

B&V’s 2012 survey may reveal a mixed bag for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but at least it shows utilities are considering the effects of not cutting them. Roughly 70 percent of utilities are considering the potential physical impacts of global warming in their long-term planning.

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