Renewed by our purpose and values - By Karen M. McCarthy -
Vice President, Communications and Corporate Affairs, Fortis Inc.
T
he COVID-19 public health pandemic has brought challenges and opportunities in all walks of life, including the utility sector. Fortis companies were quick to assess the everchanging situation and adapt our operations to continue delivering essential services to our customers. There has arguably never been a more important time than the present to ensure safe and reliable delivery of electricity. Our health care system and other frontline emergency services are relying on us. With the vast amount of change that has confronted society over the past year, many organizations, including those in our sector, are reflecting on the future. Although we are still dealing with the effects of the pandemic, we are thinking about long term energy needs and the expectations of our customers, employees, and stakeholders.
A time of reflection Throughout history, there have been examples of events which have caused us all to pause and contemplate ‘Where to next?’. In the past two decades, we dealt with the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001; the financial crisis of 2008-2009; the #MeToo movement of 2017; the global anti-racism protests of 2020; and the COVID-19 pandemic of which we are still in the midst, to name a few. “One thing is certain - events of this nature have the power to cause all of us to focus on what matters most,” said Nora Duke, Executive Vice President, Sustainability, and Chief Human Resource Officer, Fortis Inc.
“As we search for ways to continually renew and improve what we do and how we do it throughout our utilities in North America, we always come back to what has guided us since the beginning: our values.” Duke has hit on an important point. In the utility sector, we have respect for our customers and are committed to ensuring that we are there for them, no matter what. Operational excellence is what our employees strive for, and we make safety and reliability our top priorities. We are now collectively turning to a greener future, and we are focused on ensuring our businesses are sustainable for the next 100 years and beyond. “We have been given a great responsibility to deliver essential energy to our customers far and wide,” said Roger Dall’Antonia, President and CEO, FortisBC. “It’s not something to be taken lightly as people rely on us to keep the energy flowing to their homes as well as powering our nation’s businesses.” In Canada, the electricity sector employs over 95,000 people and contributes over $34 billion to Canada’s Gross Domestic Product. Though Fortis is primarily a distributor of energy in Canada, our sector generates some 640 TWh hours of energy, over 80% of which is free of greenhouse gas. (Canadian Electricity Association, State of the Canadian Electricity Industry, 2020).
canadian electricity association - THE GRID 2021 | Renewal
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