He talks the talk and not just during his nine to five o’clock. Justin Sufan is Senior Director, Regulatory, New Products at The AES Corporation, serves as Chair for the IndyHub Board of Directors and a board member for Keep Indianapolis Beautiful. A lifelong Indianapolis resident, Justin is passionate about moving Indy toward a progressive city where young people want to live, work, play, and plant roots. He works to support innovative energy products and climate action in tandem.
This might sound like a lot … because it is! Justin has incredible experience and insight into the rebrand and evolution from local utility to energy solutions focused on the future, so we sat down to learn more.
IndyHub: How does it feel to be a 20/30-something working on a team that is providing transformative energy solutions for our community?
Justin: I’ve spent my entire career at AES, and it’s been incredibly exciting to witness and be part of the transformation. When I first joined AES Indiana, over 90% of our generating capacity came from coal. Today, that’s less than half, and expected to further shrink below 30% in the next two years as we transition toward renewables. Beyond our efforts to decarbonize, we have focused on deploying digital technologies to drive better customer outcomes. In addition to the linemen, plant workers, and engineers who work hard to keep the lights on reliably, we now employ data scientists and digital experts to focus on innovation to better enable customer success.
IndyHub: For a long time Indianapolis Power & Light Company has been a staple brand in our city so why the rebrand?
Justin: AES Indiana has provided safe, reliable, and affordable energy to our customers for more than a century. Since AES acquired IPL in 2001, the company has diversified the portfolio to include conventional fuel sources and renewables and most recently prioritized major investments to modernize the energy grid. Our new name, AES Indiana, reflects this evolution. Our AES Indiana customers will benefit from AES’ global scale, expertise, innovation and purpose. AES Indiana is now accelerating its technology and digital transformations to deliver greener and smarter energy solutions for customers.
IndyHub: Will AES Indiana continue to be as devoted to the strength, growth, and prosperity of Indianapolis as IPL has been for decades?
Justin: At AES Indiana, our commitment to the communities we proudly serve remains the same. We will continue our work to invest in our community through our community involvement, advancing our commitment to diversity and inclusion, and of course, by ensuring we are providing reliable and sustainable energy solutions.
IndyHub: With new offerings under the global AES brand, are there exciting new projects that users can expect?
Justin: Absolutely! We’ve announced exciting new developments, including an agreement to acquire a new solar project in Indiana. We also recently partnered with Motor to help facilitate electric car adoption through new digital platforms. I think Motor is especially exciting for our audience; the offering provides flexible electric car subscription services for individual customers, a digital electric car purchasing platform, and a community car sharing solution for workplaces, apartments, and campuses. This partnership provides a broad array of grid, economic and environmental benefits and is an innovative approach toward electrifying transportation, while creating benefits for all customers, even if they do not drive an electric car.
IndyHub: As an energy solutions provider, how is AES Indiana committed to using different renewable energy sources?
Justin: Sustainability is not only an AES Indiana objective, it’s a preference of many AES Indiana customers. The Company projects the future of its generation fleet through its long-range planning process with sustainability in mind. This includes evaluating current renewable technologies like solar, solar + batteries and wind resources as replacement generation for potential fossil fuel resource retirements.
IndyHub: What are some ways that AES Indiana is focused on energy supplies that benefit the environment?
Justin: AES has a company target to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2040. In concert with this initiative, AES Indiana announced the retirement of some of our coal-fired units by 2023 based on the results of the Company’s recent long-range planning process. These retired coal-fired resources will be replaced by clean, renewable energy. AES Indiana plans to reevaluate its long-range plans for its generation fleet again in 2022 with a strong focus on providing energy that is reliable, resilient, stable, affordable and sustainable for our customers.
Balancing the cost of electricity and the environmental impact of producing reliable power remains one of the top priorities for AES Indiana, as well as for Justin in his personal life. He shared with us that little by little, every small choice we make can have lasting changes to our environment and he hopes to be a part of that solution.
Innovative ways that you – AES customers – can lower your energy consumption:
AES Indiana customers can explore innovative ways to save energy and money at https://www.aesindiana.com/your-home. Here are a few examples that will get customers on their way to lowering their energy impact, and reducing their monthly bills:
Virtual Home Energy Assessment: A free virtual home energy assessment is the easiest and most convenient way for homeowners to learn how to make their homes as energy efficient as possible. Includes:
- An assessment of your home’s energy efficiency
- A custom list of upgrades to help your home become energy efficient
- Details on AES Indiana rebates for qualified home improvements
- A free smart thermostat, LED light bulbs and other instant savers, if eligible
AES Indiana Marketplace: AES Indiana customers can shop for hundreds of energy efficiency products and services at www.aesindianamarketplace.com. Includes:
- Smart thermostats
- LED lighting
- Smart power strips
- Electric vehicle chargers
- Smart home products
- Heat pump water heaters
For customers wanting to take savings to the next level, AES Indiana offers a variety of Home Improvement Rebates, for high efficiency heat pumps, heat pump water heaters, ductless mini-splits, AC tune ups and more.
