What is Energy Security?

Energy security means ensuring that New Mexico has access to a reliable and resilient energy system before, during, and after a disaster. Energy security requires planning for disruptions, strengthening energy infrastructure, and coordinating with partners across all levels of government and industry.

ECAM’s Role

The Energy Conservation and Management Division (ECAM) plays a central leadership role in energy security for the State of New Mexico. Our responsibilities span planning, coordination, response, and resilience-building activities across all energy sectors.

Emergency Support Function 12 (ESF-12) – Energy:

ECAM serves as the lead agency for ESF-12, coordinating information about the assessment, restoration, and stabilization of critical energy systems during emergencies. Emergency Support Function 12 is a supporting state agency that represents the energy sector during a state-level emergency. New Mexico has seventeen Emergency Support Functions, each represented by a different state agency. New Mexico adopted the Emergency Support Function model from FEMA’s National Response Framework. More information about Emergency Support Functions is available here.

Developer of the State Energy Security Plan (SESP):
ECAM develops and maintains the SESP to guide emergency energy coordination, infrastructure risk assessment, and resilience strategies.

Exercise Design and Facilitation:
We support energy emergency preparedness by designing and leading exercises that simulate real-world energy threats and test response capabilities.

Tribal and Interagency Energy Coordination:
EMNRD engages with Tribal Nations and state/federal partners to build inclusive, resilient energy response systems.

Spotlight – State Energy Security Plan

The current State Energy Security Plan (SESP) is New Mexico’s roadmap for keeping our energy systems strong and reliable during emergencies. It helps guide how the state prepares for and responds to things like power outages, fuel shortages, and wildfires. The plan is updated regularly based on new data and insights from training and exercises.

The plan includes:
– A comprehensive profile of energy resources, delivery and end-uses
– Risks to our energy systems
– How we respond to energy emergencies
– Ways to reduce damage and restore power faster
– Working with tribal, local, and private partners
– Steps to build long-term energy reliability

State Energy Security Plan (PDF)

State Energy Security Plan Appendices (PDF) 

National Collaboration

ECAM actively participates in the National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO) Energy Security Committee. Through this partnership, New Mexico contributes to national policy development, shares best practices, and engages in multistate coordination efforts to improve energy emergency preparedness.

Monthly Energy Sector Coordination

As New Mexico’s Energy Security Program Coordinator, Shawnelle Chavez leads monthly energy sector coordination meetings that bring together public and private partners to:
– Share situational awareness
– Discuss potential threats or planned outages
– Coordinate planning efforts and resources
– Strengthen sector-wide emergency communication

Want to join our coordination group or learn more? Contact: Shawnelle Chavez (shawnelle.chavez@emnrd.nm.gov)

Response in Action – 2024 South Fork & Salt Fire

In June 2024, the South Fork and Salt Fires impacted thousands of New Mexicans, threatening critical infrastructure, displacing communities, and interrupting utility services. As part of the state’s emergency response, ECAM was activated for the ESF-12 role by providing the following support:

– Coordinated with utilities to identify and communicate infrastructure threats and prioritize restoration.
– Worked within the State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) to provide situational awareness on energy outages and fuel supply disruptions.
– Facilitated information sharing between the utility sector, state agencies, Federal agencies and tribal governments.
– Documented impacts and response actions that will inform updates to the State Energy Security Plan.

This incident reinforced the need for proactive planning and coordination and led to new commitments to improve Wildfire planning and communication protocols statewide.

SEOC Briefing with ESF’s during the 2024 South Fork and Salt Fire

Energy Exercises & Training Support

ECAM supports statewide energy resilience through the development and facilitation of energy emergency exercises focused on energy systems, fuel supply, and utility coordination.

Our capabilities include:
– Designing and leading tabletop exercises (TTXs) and workshops
– Customizing scenarios to address partner-specific threats (e.g., wildfire, PSPS, grid failure)
– Supporting post-exercise evaluation and after-action reports
– Enhancing energy coordination and communication protocols across jurisdictions

Interested in hosting a custom energy exercise with your organization?
Contact: Shawnelle Chavez
Email: shawnelle.chavez@emnrd.nm.gov