Alabama Power recently released its second annual Corporate Sustainability Report, outlining the company’s continued progress in supporting the needs of customers and the communities it serves. The 2021 report provides a broad recap of the company’s accomplishments over the past year, based on Alabama Power’s five pillars of sustainability: People, Environment, Social Responsibility, Governance and Innovation.

“Alabama Power is constantly adapting to meet the challenges and opportunities of the times, while supporting our founding commitment to be of service to the state. And as our story evolves, so does how we share it,” said Stephanie Cooper, vice president of Corporate Sustainability.

This month, Alabama NewsCenter is sharing five stories from the report, highlighting the company’s five pillars of sustainability. For our final story we focus on Innovation:

Alabama Power 2021 Corporate Sustainability Report: Innovation from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.

Fiber is essential to sustaining our electric system into the future – it makes the grid smarter and more resilient than ever before. Through our grid modernization program, we’ve added 1,200 miles of fiber cable since 2017 with plans to add more.

Infrastructure is one of our strengths in making and moving electricity – safely and reliably – for our customers. Tommy House, Connectivity project manager in the Power Delivery organization, explained: “The fiber optics we’re using are bringing the most modern communication capabilities to our electric system. They allow us to minimize customer outages and, in many cases, reduce the time that customers are affected.”

In expanding our fiber and wireless network, employees designed a partnership with telecommunications companies to provide broadband internet service through leases of our surplus fiber capacity. Legislators and regulators facilitated this new use of our infrastructure to reach deeper into rural communities – and help bridge the digital divide.

Project Supervisor David Skoglund said, “With us already putting the fiber in for company use, we’re also using that same path to provide broadband internet and high-speed connectivity to these rural areas.”

In 2021, we began laying cable from Evergreen in southwest Alabama, farther west to Jackson, then south to Mobile. When completed, the project, which will ultimately connect Plant Farley in southeast Alabama to Plant Barry in the southwest corner of the state, will cover about 280 miles and have the potential to deliver broadband service to communities where few options exist today.

A crew consisting of Alabama Power personnel and contractors works to install conduit to carry underground fiber-optic technology that will help expand broadband access in rural Alabama. (Michael Sznajderman / Alabama NewsCenter)

The goal is to expand internet availability and improve gig speeds, which are vital to staying connected in today’s world. The pandemic demonstrated just how important this service is. In education, for example, the increased use of livestreaming classes and online video instruction has made faster speeds and high-quality internet connections a necessity for school systems.

Broadband also affects the viability of economic development projects across the state. Industries looking to expand or relocate need to know their operations will have sufficient and reliable internet access. Not that long ago, the primary factors for relocating or growing companies were the right site and right workforce.

“Alabama has always had those things,” said George Stegall, Alabama Power’s Connectivity manager. “But today, much more emphasis is being put on reliable connectivity. Things like sending and receiving massive files, 3D printing and staying in contact with other offices, clients and vendors are all important considerations for companies of all sizes across all industries.”

Once the underground cable is in place, the soil is replaced and compacted, and the grass re-seeded. “Before we move on from any construction site, we make sure that those native grasses have taken root and have started to grow,” Skoglund said.

“Sustainability is important in all aspects of our business, particularly on projects such as this,” House said. “We’re sustaining economic growth, education, and grid resiliency and reliability with each singular construction effort.

“We’re building the grid of the future that’s going to allow us to adapt and stay current with grid technologies for many years to come.”

This story originally appeared in the Alabama Power 2021 Corporate Sustainability Report, which was released on Earth Day 2022. Learn more at www.poweringsustainability.com.