The Ohio Manufacturers' Association

Bad energy reporting is not harmless. It can cost customers billions. Too often, the media repeats utility crisis claims before testing the forecasts, challenging the assumptions or asking who benefits from the proposed solution. That is how an untested claim becomes the accepted story. The accepted story becomes policy. And billions of dollars in risk get shifted onto customers. In RealClearEnergy, Dave O'Neil, our director of communications, explains why the media must stop accepting the framing offered by the most powerful institution in the story. Read the full column below. https://lnkd.in/eqmjFzFv

When did skepticism disappear from energy reporting? Too much of today’s coverage starts with the conclusion and works backward. Forecasts are presented as facts, administrative market outcomes are described as physical shortages and speculative demand is treated as though it is already connected to the grid. That is not just imprecise. It shapes public opinion, influences lawmakers and makes billion-dollar spending proposals appear inevitable before the underlying assumptions have been tested. Energy policy deserves the same rigor we expect from any other beat. Challenge the forecasts. Question the market rules. Separate what is happening today from what might happen tomorrow. Ohio customers are paying the bill. They deserve reporting that tests the narrative before repeating it. https://lnkd.in/eDJSA2h5

There’s something inspiring about seeing how things are made. OMA President Ryan Augsburger had the opportunity to tour U.S. Bridge in Cambridge as the company celebrated its 90th anniversary. It’s an extraordinary Ohio manufacturing success story. Founded in 1936 by Herman and Ted Rogovin, U.S. Bridge grew from a small operation producing steel culverts into an industry pioneer, becoming the first company in America to manufacture factory-built, all-welded steel truss bridges. Ninety years later, the company remains family-owned and operated by the Rogovins’ descendants, a remarkable testament to the strength and longevity of Ohio manufacturing. During the tour, we watched the new Front Street bridge for downtown Columbus taking shape. Every girder, weld, bend, and measurement reflected the precision and craftsmanship that define Ohio manufacturers. One stop was especially memorable. Damon walked us through how the massive press he operates applies 800 tons of force to bend bridge girders into the precise arc required by the engineers’ design. In a few months, thousands of Ohioans will drive across that bridge without ever realizing the expertise, care, and attention to detail that went into every piece of steel beneath their tires. That’s manufacturing. It’s innovation. It’s skilled trades. It’s engineering. It’s owners big and small. It’s employees who take pride in getting every fraction of an inch right. And it’s companies like U.S. Bridge that continue to demonstrate why Ohio remains one of the world’s premier manufacturing states. Congratulations to the Rogovin family and everyone at U.S. Bridge on 90 years of building not only bridges, but stronger communities and a stronger Ohio economy. Here’s to the next 90 years.

Our very own Lindsey Short asks the question Ohio lawmakers should keep front and center. Who should pay the enormous cost of serving new data centers and other large electricity users? The answer should be straightforward. The customer creating the cost should pay the full cost upfront. Not manufacturers. Not small businesses. Not families. Anything less shifts the risk onto existing customers while utilities build the infrastructure, earn a return and collect for decades. Ohio lawmakers should reject the utility wish list. https://lnkd.in/eN8bkDQK

This is a useful story from Axios and Alissa Widman Neese. It is also an indictment of how Ohio’s electricity system treats customers. Find page three of your bill. Locate the “price to compare.” Search a state website. Compare fixed and variable rates. Watch for cancellation fees and promotional traps. Sign up for alerts. Remember to shop again later. Do everything correctly and you might save $12 a month. Shopping can help at the margins, and customers should take advantage of available savings. But this is an absurd amount of homework to place on families and businesses while the largest forces driving electric bills remain beyond their control. Ohioans should not need to become amateur energy traders just to protect themselves from an unaffordable electric bill. The system needs accountability, transparency and real customer protection. Not a scavenger hunt. https://lnkd.in/eEYT7p-H

Institutional hypocrisy is warning customers about scarcity while the operating data shows PJM had power to spare. Our analysis found that during the hottest hours of July 2, PJM maintained approximately 9,700 megawatts of operating reserves capable of responding within 30 minutes. It required roughly 3,200 megawatts. That left about 6,500 megawatts above the required level on average, enough to serve approximately 100 steel mills or 100 hyperscale data centers. Even during the tightest hour of the hottest day, PJM maintained 55% more reserves than required. Now Reuters reports PJM briefly paid nearly $28,000 per megawatt to balance the grid, while its own market monitor questions whether the market paid far more than necessary. High prices are not proof that the region lacked power. The grid performed. PJM’s crisis narrative did not. https://lnkd.in/e8q4mcCj

Five peak hours can affect what a plant pays all year. With temperatures expected to climb into the mid- to high-90s this holiday week, Ohio manufacturers should be watching the electric grid. The heat could drive some of the highest electric demand hours of the summer. Regional grid operator PJM procures electric capacity to ensure enough power is available when demand is highest. This year, customers across PJM will pay more than $16 billion for capacity, compared with about $2 billion just two years ago. A manufacturing facility’s capacity costs are based on how much electricity it uses during the five highest “coincident peak” hours between June 1 and Sept. 30. Reducing usage during those hours can help lower a facility’s share of capacity costs. Based on PJM load forecasts, June 30 through July 4 could produce several of this summer’s peak hours, most likely between 4 and 8 p.m. Members that manage peak usage or participate in demand response should be prepared for potential action this week. Those not already managing peak demand should consider how these strategies can help control costs. Need help understanding peak management or demand response? Contact us to learn more. Ohio manufacturers are already paying significantly higher prices for the promise of reliability. Customers being asked to pay billions more deserve grid planning grounded in verified demand, sound forecasts and clear accountability.

This is worth a closer look. OMA’s analysis of the AES Ohio data center tariff found a $1.37 billion cost gap that could land on Ohio manufacturers, families and other customers. Let’s be clear. OMA is not against tariffs that truly protect customers. We are against utility-backed tariffs that look like protection on paper while guaranteeing decades of cost recovery for the utility and leaving manufacturers, families and other customers exposed. Under this proposal, AES Ohio would receive 40 years of guaranteed transmission cost recovery. Data centers would have a 12-year payment obligation. Customers could get the gap. That is not customer protection. It is risk-shifting. OMA did the math. The numbers are right here. https://lnkd.in/gur_kpud

The Blade editorial board is right. Ohio’s utility forecast problem is a regulatory capture problem. Regulators are supposed to protect the public interest. But when utility forecasts are accepted at face value, and speculative data center inquiries are allowed to become costs for manufacturers, families and small businesses, the system is not protecting customers. It is protecting utilities. We have been clear. Forecasts are not demand. Before customers are asked to pay, utilities should have to prove the load is real, independently reviewed and part of the public record. That is exactly what the bipartisan Electricity Forecast Integrity Act would do. We appreciate Sen. Paula Hicks-Hudson and Sen. Mark Romanchuk for leading on legislation that brings transparency and accountability to a process that has gone unchecked for far too long. Ohio customers deserve a regulator that tests utility claims, not one that turns those claims into electric bills. https://lnkd.in/gWjXVRR7

Ohio’s energy future is not theoretical for manufacturers. It shows up in electric bills. It affects investment decisions. It shapes whether companies can grow, compete and keep making things in Ohio. That is why the Ohio Manufacturers’ Energy Conference is a can’t-miss event. On Aug. 27 in Columbus, Congressman Troy Balderson and Congressman Bob Latta will keynote a customer-focused discussion on federal energy policy, grid reliability and the challenges facing manufacturers and large energy users. The conference will bring together manufacturers, policymakers and energy experts to talk directly about the issues that matter most: cost, reliability, load forecasting, transmission, regulatory policy, behind-the-meter solutions, energy management strategies and emerging technologies. This is not another energy conference where people talk around customers. This is where Ohio’s manufacturers, policymakers and energy experts come together to talk directly about cost, reliability and the decisions that will shape whether Ohio manufacturers can compete. Early bird registration is open now. Join us Aug. 27 at the Hilton Columbus Downtown. https://lnkd.in/eHH2a2SC