Presented by: Lucas Cade, FirstEnergy

1. Utilities and Economic
Development
MEDA Primer Course
March 9, 2018
*Not Quite Soulmates, But Good Partners
Nonetheless

2. First Energy Territory
 65,000 Square Miles – portions of 6 states
 6 million customers
 24,000 miles of transmission lines

3. Why Do Utilities Commit to
Economic Development?
ANY QUESTIONS??

4. What is Economic Development?
“At its core, economic development is the
creation of wealth, which manifests itself in job
retention or creation, increasing the tax base,
and raising the general standard of living of a
community, county, region or state.”

5. Why Does FirstEnergy Believe in Economic Development?
 Utilities are forever tied to their communities – as a community prospers, so does
the utility.
 The multiplier effect allows for growth in jobs, wages, taxes and revenue from spin-
off activity – forward and backward linkages.
 It turns the meters.

6. How does FE contribute to the economic
development process?
 We subscribe to the four Ps:
 PREPARE
 PROMOTE
 PARTNER
 PARTICIPATE

7. The Four Ps do NOT include:

8. Prepare – FE can help with preparing your
product. Utilities have a wealth of data they can
utilize.
 Customer Base Analysis – industry profiles
 Economic Data – often through subscriptions with third party
providers
 Electric Service Capabilities – capacity for service and
reliability for industrial sites and buildings.

9. Moody’s Analytics9

11. Promote – FE can help with promoting your
product. Utilities have a long history of
marketing and outreach.
 Marketing – Cooperative efforts with counties, municipalities,
or regions
 Marketing – Specific industrial sites and buildings
 Marketing – Industry specific or general site location
consultants

12. 12

13. LOIS – Location One Information System13
FirstEnergy’s
Footprint

14. Partner –Utilities can be an active part of
your outreach team.
Direct Outreach – Cooperative efforts on industry
visits, planning and participating in trade shows
Indirect Support – Assisting with confirmation of
target industries, validation of prospects

15. FirstEnergy has an extensive network of Customer Support Managers
who work in tandem with Economic Development
Utilities can provide very valuable industry and/or customer information,
including growth and expansion plans.

16. Participate –Utilities can oftentimes be a
vital member of your prospect team
Most importantly, utilities provide real time data on
electric service capabilities and costs
Utilities have a 10,000-foot view of a region and can
provide an accurate and realistic voice in decision-
making
Despite their contributions, utilities generally are not
deal closers

18. LET ME SUM UP!
UTILITIES ARE TIED TO THE COMMUNITIES THEY
SERVE
UTILITIES WILL WORK ON YOUR BEHALF
UTILITIES AND COMMUNITIES HAVE VERY
SIMILAR GROWTH GOALS
UTILITIES CAN BE A VERY EFFECTIVE
CONTRIBUTOR TO YOUR ED STRATEGIES

19. The Ultimate Goal: Economic Prosperity

20. WE ARE HAPPY TO HELP!
FIRSTENERGY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Lucas Cade, Senior Economic Development Advisor
lcade@firstenergycorp.com
301-582-5235