Fayetteville PWC CEO talks rate hikes, renewable resources and more in Q&A
Timothy Bryant marked his second month as CEO and general manager of the Fayetteville Public Works Commission two weeks ago, and the Goldsboro native is off and running.
Bryant started on Aug. 14 after 15 years with Florida Power and Light Company, bringing more than 25 years of experience in renewable energy, plant management and community relations, according to his PWC biography. A graduate of North Carolina State University, Bryant served in the Army National Guard for 12 years and began his career in utilities in 1997, the biography states.
In a question-and-answer session with The Fayetteville Observer on Thursday, among the topics discussed, Bryant shared his vision for the city utility company that provides water, sewage and electricity to residents; and touched on his plans to tackle potential power crises. His answers are excerpted below and have been edited for brevity and clarity.
On severe weather
Q: Florida saw a lot of intense weather during your time there. What did you learn from your experiences there that you’ve brought to your role at Fayetteville PWC?
A: I did live in Florida for 15 years, and living there made one truly appreciate the power of Mother Nature and her impact not only on the environment but also (on) our local economies. My primary takeaways from those experiences that accompanied me here to Fayetteville are... first and foremost, the importance of communications, processes and procedures to deal with those types of situations. Number two is really building in resilience to all of our systems to ensure that we can get life back to normal or to some sense of normalcy, rather, as quickly and safely as possible.
Q: The effects of climate change are increasingly evident, which could mean more frequent and more intense storms going forward. Is PWC making any particular plans to address what could be more or longer power outages in the coming years?
A: We’re going to continue to build resilience into our electrical system by not only embracing technology but also continuing to invest in our infrastructure, whether that’s newer, harder poles (or) electrical devices at our power facilities and our substations to predict power outages before they even occur. All those kinds of technologies that we planned and we have already begun and continue to deliver, will be effective in shortening and minimizing outages, whether it’s in a blue-sky condition or a gray-sky condition.
Q: The city of Fayetteville put a half-billion dollars toward flood mitigation efforts. What role, if any, would the PWC have in such efforts, whether financial or otherwise?
A: The city should be applauded for their efforts to try and hold back the wrath of Mother Nature. To that end, it’s a laudable goal. Here at PWC, we recognize the city’s mission to try to mitigate flooding because of all the horrific events that occurred in the past, and we’ll continue to support the city in their efforts. Currently, we have no financial implications in the city’s efforts. But what we are doing is we are continuing to strengthen and upgrade our water and sewer system to be able to better manage Mother Nature’s wrath when it occurs. There’s one thing about the Cape Fear River and the basin: when it floods, it floods, and there’s nothing that man can possibly do to hold that water back. All we can do is … plan and communicate and be sure that we have policies in place to deal with the situations to get our customers’ lives back to normal as quickly as possible.
Renewable energy
Q: I see you have experience working with wind turbines. Will renewable resources like wind and solar power factor into your plan for Fayetteville PWC as CEO?
A: With Duke Energy Progress providing the majority of PWC’s power, I look forward to continuing to work with Duke to deliver on its carbon-reduction plan, which in essence becomes our carbon-reduction plan. They’ve communicated that plan in their integrated resources plan to allow them to be carbon-free by 2050, as well as to reach their 2030 goals. Along with working with Duke to accomplish its goals, which in essence becomes us, we will continue to seek to add large-scale solar projects and battery storage here in the PWC area, along with continuing to build out our community solar projects and encouraging our customers that can transition to rooftop solar in their own home-based storage projects. We’ll definitely continue to support renewable energy, but at the local level, it’s going to be more solar because we can’t really deliver on wind here in Fayetteville.
On Fayetteville PWC's present and future
Q: What do you believe is unique about Fayetteville PWC?
A: What is truly unique about us here in Fayetteville is that we have such close contact with our customers, unlike the investor-owned utilities. Investor-owned utilities, they have to have contact with their customers, but here in Fayetteville, our customers are indeed our friends and family. We see them in church, we see them at the grocery store and we readily receive feedback from them on our performance.
Q: What is your vision for Fayetteville PWC over the next five years?
A: Over the next five years, we’re going to continue to strive to be recognized as America’s best utility. We have begun, so far under my tenure, to shore up some of our internal processes as well as stay engaged with our customers and our employers to continue to work to that end.
Q: One of the main questions our readers always have is if there is a rate hike planned for the future. What can you share about that?
A: Here at PWC, we don’t have shareholders, and we are truly a not-for-profit utility. As such, we continuously look at rates all the time to ensure that we have the proper revenue to deliver on the expected service that our customers demand. From time to time, that does require us to amend rates to ensure that we deliver on those expectations.
Q: In 2020, an outside company, Bernhard Capital, sought a deal where it would pay the city of Fayetteville a lump sum payment for the right to operate the PWC for a specified amount of time and collect revenues. Has there been any talk, to your knowledge, of Bernhard or any company seeking a deal recently?
A: There are no inquiries from Bernhard or any other equity company, or anyone, for that matter, seeking to acquire PWC. In looking back at all of the information that I had received about that Bernhard proposed transaction, the way PWC really staved that off is by delivering outstanding service and tremendous value to our customers. To that, we will continue to deliver outstanding service and tremendous value to our customers such that no other equity firm or anyone else could see PWC as a potential acquisition.
Got a tip for a follow-up on this story? Government watchdog reporter Lexi Solomon can be reached at ABSolomon@gannett.com or 910-481-8526.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Fayetteville PWC CEO Timothy Bryant shares vision for future
