Getting To Know You - Robert Sanchez

NJUA is proud to profile NJUA members to learn more about one another. 

We are pleased to spotlight Robert Sanchez, who has served as president & CEO of Orange and Rockland Utilities, Inc. since December 2017. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Consolidated Edison, Inc., operating energy utility companies in New York and New Jersey, and providing smarter and cleaner energy solutions for nearly 1 million people.

Tell us a little about yourself.

Born and raised in Yonkers, I come from a family of four kids.

My wife and I are approaching our 30th wedding anniversary; we have three incredible young adults. Two of my children live and work in the NY/NJ area and one has settled in the Dallas/Fort Worth area.

How did you get into this field?

I have always enjoyed math and science and I was extremely fortunate to have some incredible Engineering professors. I worked as an electrician at a print manufacturing company and a field engineer at a traffic consultant company right out of college.

Since joining Con Edison, I have been very fortunate to work with some amazing women and men in many different aspects. I take pride that our company supports science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education, providing grants for high school and college-level classroom projects that can mold the next generation of professionals. And we’re also investing in green jobs training for the future. 

What accomplishments are you most proud of in 2023?

Safety is the core principle of our company culture; we strive for a zero-harm environment. The consistent application of our programs has resulted in a safer work environment for our customers and our employees. In fact, we have seen a 95% reduction in injuries since 2009.

In addition, we implemented a new billing system this fall, a shift from a system that we had been using for more than 50 years. The team had been preparing five years for this historic transition; the new system has made every aspect of customer accounts and billing more agile. 

We’ve also seen tremendous progress in our clean energy goals, such as completed projects associated with energy efficiency, strategic undergrounding, overhead system hardening and electric vehicle infrastructure.

What are some of the biggest challenges your company is facing next year?

As society becomes increasingly dependent on resilient, reliable electricity, climate change is bringing more frequent and severe storms, flooding, icing events, and heat waves that impact our energy systems. These events can and will have a direct impact on our customers unless we adapt. 

O&R/Rockland Electric has been taking action to plan, build, and maintain a resilient energy system to withstand increasing extreme weather events. Over the past year, we’ve invested more than $250 million in system reliability enhancements throughout our service area. We are far from finished and are committed to investing in, leading and delivering the transition to the clean energy future our customers expect. This includes an additional $300 million invested in our New Jersey territories between 2024-2028.

We are also committed to implementing and expanding energy efficiency programs for our customers to help curb costs, such as rebate programs for appliances, discounts on smart thermostats and LED light bulbs, electric vehicle charging incentives, and much more.

What are you most looking forward to in 2024?

For O&R/Rockland Electric, we have a lot of work to do to ensure that we meet our clean energy goals. This upcoming year is filled with robust investments that will help us take a major step towards a clean energy future. I look forward to the completion of many of these projects in both New York and New Jersey. 

On a personal note, I am certainly looking forward to my son’s wedding!

How do you relax?

Most of my spare time is focused on friends and family and enjoying events with them. However, I am an avid New York Yankees fan and thoroughly enjoy watching them play on TV or at Yankee Stadium.

If you were only allowed to listen to one singer/band for the rest of your life, who would it be?

That's a tough question, but my two favorite concerts that I attended were Mumford & Sons and Rob Thomas.

Can you be found on social media?

Yes, please go to LinkedIn.