News
Cynthia Arcate to head PowerOptions
Boston, Tuesday, May 19. PowerOptions Inc., the nonprofit corporation that manages the PowerOptions? energy purchasing consortium organized by HEFA, the Massachusetts Health and Educational Facilities Authority, today announced the filling of an existing position by hiring Cynthia Arcate as its President and CEO.
"We are extremely pleased to have Cynthia Arcate, with her strong energy background in both the private and public sectors, take the helm of this award winning program in delivering savings to its members at a time when innovation and technology can play a greater role in helping customers reduce their energy costs," said Barbara Kates-Garnick, PowerOptions trustee and chair of the search committee. The PowerOptions search committee conducted an extensive search over a six month period.
Arcate was the Deputy Commissioner for Programs at the Massachusetts Division of Energy Resources (DOER), held several legal and senior management positions at National Grid and most recently worked at an energy technology company that furthered customers. ability to receive payments to adjust their energy demand during periods of high usage.
"PowerOptions has been a leader for over ten years in reducing energy costs for its members, and I look forward to identifying new opportunities for energy savings both in supply and also in terms of efficiency and new technology," stated Cynthia Arcate.
With more than 500 members, PowerOptions serves nonprofit organizations from every sector, including hospitals, colleges, museums and human service providers, as well as public entities such as cities and towns, public school systems, and housing authorities.
Joseph Collins from UMass Medical School said, "The significant savings we have achieved through PowerOptions can be put toward patient services or other important uses. We look forward to working with Cynthia Arcate, as she works to broaden the program to benefit from new market opportunities."
One of the first orders of business for Arcate will be to investigate possible benefits for PowerOptions members from federal stimulus funds. She will also work to add renewable energy, efficiency and other demand side initiatives to the organization's portfolio of services.
Ms. Arcate comes to PowerOptions most recently from Comverge, Inc., a clean energy provider, where she was the Director of Business Development for the Northeast. She holds a Juris Doctor degree from New York Law School and an undergraduate degree from St. Lawrence University.
The award-winning PowerOptions program was formed by HEFA in 1996 and operates as a stand-alone nonprofit organization. It is the largest electricity and natural gas purchasing consortium in Massachusetts, making up approximately 5% of the entire competitive retail market for electricity in Massachusetts with a combined demand of approximately 200 megawatts and 31.6 million decatherms of expected natural gas usage for the contract term ending October 2011. To date PowerOptions has saved its members more than $300 million on utility bills compared to LDC basic service rates.
Any nonprofit or public institution may become a member and participate in this collective purchasing effort. For more information, call 617-737-8480 or visit www.poweroptions.org.
