Historical Utility Budget Requests & Approvals by Public Commissions

Our client, a prominent global consultancy, enlisted our assistance to identify research articles and scientific publications containing cost data for various heating methods. The objective was to compare the levelized cost of heating using Natural Gas Furnaces, Heat Pumps, Electric Furnaces, and Hybrid Systems, with a primary focus on three cost-related variables.

To address this request, we supported the client in identifying a certified source containing homogenized and comparable cost data for the heating systems of interest. Additionally, we provided minimum, maximum, and average values of all solicited data entries to facilitate the client’s cost analysis. Moreover, we consulted research articles to substantiate the methodology employed.

The outcome of our efforts was noteworthy. We delivered 100% of the requested data points and organized the data to assist the client in understanding the assumptions made by the original authors. We also created a source map as an appendix to enhance the transparency of the deliverable and facilitate navigation through the original sources. Furthermore, we offered data for forecasting as value-added, along with complementary sources providing alternative approaches to calculate the input variables required for the levelized comparison.

Client Challenge

Our client a leading global consultancy, aimed to conduct a historic screening on utility company budget requests and subsequent actual
approval amounts by Public Utility Commissions in the US for the past 10 years.

Our Solution

Based on the companies’ locations, we compared requested budgets vs. real USD amounts approved by public organs.
Offering insights on the social and economic impact of the utility companies’ projects on their communities.
Leveraging a combination of public and paid databases to ensure our research’s completeness.

Outcome

Mapped the public entities involved in budget approval of new utilities’ projects:

− Identified additional sources the utilities’ sector utilizes to fund new or existing projects.

− Designed a comprehensive framework to showcase how public investment changes across time.

− Offering both qualitative and quantitative insights to integrally address our client’s needs.

Employed complementary research methods to ensure the delivery met the client’s urgent deadline (24 hours):

− Specifying the key words leveraged to optimize our results’ relevance and explaining missing values.

− Dedicated double capacity to ensure the delivery of this and a complementary request that conjunctly analyzed public investments and the most prominent infrastructure failures in the last 10-15 years.