OREANDA-NEWS. Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) announced on Wednesday that they are jointly offering a new electric foodservice energy-efficient rebate to qualifying businesses in the city of Los Angeles. 

Through this collaborative program, foodservice establishments, such as school cafeterias, restaurants and hospitals, can take advantage of generous rebates on more than 100 types of energy-efficient equipment. However, only new or replacement energy-efficient equipment will be eligible for SoCalGas' incentives.

"We are pleased to expand our partnership with LADWP, offering this program to our foodservice business customers in support of their investment in long-term energy savings," said Dan Rendler, SoCalGas director of customer programs & assistance. "This collaboration is yet another example of how our two utilities work together to help our customers increase their savings." 

SoCalGas will be the lead administrator of the program. This agreement between SoCalGas and LADWP could serve as a model for other agency providers that aim to offer similar programs to their customers.

"This is an excellent collaboration that will allow qualifying LADWP business customers to access energy-efficient rebates that will help them significantly reduce their energy use, and ultimately, lower their utility bills," said LADWP Chief Sustainability and Economic Development Officer Nancy Sutley.  

Through the rebate program's new streamlined one-stop process, SoCalGas and LADWP will be able to help businesses more easily access and benefit from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California's (the Metropolitan) existing SoCal Water$mart rebates. The Metropolitan's 26-member service agencies – which include the LADWP – offer SoCal Water$mart rebates.

"Metropolitan and SoCalGas have collaborated on efficiency projects since 2014. We are pleased that the foodservice rebate program will be another in an expanding portfolio of joint programs that Metropolitan and SoCalGas are implementing to increase water and energy efficiency throughout Southern California," said the Metropolitan's Water Efficiency Team Manager Bill McDonnell.

The new program launched on June 1, offering a range of cost-cutting incentives to eligible restaurants, hotel kitchens, hospitals and school cafeterias, among others.