Latham, Ervin, Vognsen & Associates

What Latham, Ervin, Vognsen & Associates does

Latham, Ervin, Vognsen & Associates, Inc. (LEV) is a privately-held independent energy advisory firm headquartered in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, founded in 1995 by Robert J. Latham, Louie R. Ervin Sr., and David Vognsen, with Louie R. Ervin II joining in 1996. The firm provides strategic advisory, purchasing consortium management, regulatory representation, and rate study services to purchasers of electricity, natural gas, and steam across the Midwest. Its client base spans over 25 industrial companies, 25+ municipal and rural electric cooperative utilities in Iowa, four Midwest state school board associations encompassing roughly 2,000 schools, healthcare systems, colleges and universities, cities and counties, trade associations, and an emerging set of wind and solar developers. The firm also advises on MISO energy, capacity, and transmission market participation.

LEV operates five core service lines: Electric & Natural Gas Market Strategy (cost-saving assessments applying economics, finance, and engineering expertise), Aggregate Energy Purchasing (consortium structuring and operation, including bid preparation and contract negotiation), Studies/Case Development (feasibility analyses for system acquisitions, divestitures, generation and transmission projects, and ISO-related advice), Energy Regulatory Representation (rate case analysis and expert witness testimony before state commissions and FERC), and Utility Rate Studies (revenue requirement, class cost of service, and rate design for small municipal and rural utilities). Revenue is generated through professional services consulting fees and consortium management fees, with no publicly disclosed pricing and no software, SaaS, or platform product. The firm differentiates on full independence from energy suppliers, deep regulatory relationships across multiple state commissions and FERC, and the consortium aggregation model that delivers buying-power economies to fragmented mid-market and institutional energy buyers.

Name

Latham, Ervin, Vognsen & Associates

Legal name

Latham, Ervin, Vognsen & Associates, Inc.

Website

https://lev-energyadvisors.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Latham, Ervin, Vognsen & Associates is an independent energy advisory firm in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, serving Midwest purchasers of electricity, natural gas, and steam across industrial, educational, healthcare, municipal, and association clients via consortium aggregation and regulatory representation.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Energy Advisory Services

NAICS

Engineering Services (541330)

SIC

Services-Engineering Services (8711)

akta.pro primary industry

Corporate & Voluntary Procurement Policy (PPAs, Green Tariffs, 24/7 CFE) (EUAMANAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

Civil & Structural Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAA)

Keywords

• Energy market advisory
• Utility procurement consulting
• Purchasing consortium management
• Regulatory representation services
• Rate case analysis

Headquarters

HQ city

Cedar Rapids

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Energy Advisory Services: Consulting fees for strategic energy assessments, rate case analysis, expert witness testimony, and regulatory representation services provided to industrial clients, utilities, and institutions.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Latham, Ervin, Vognsen & Associates (LEV) is an independent energy advisory firm providing strategic assessments of electricity, natural gas, and steam cost-saving opportunities. The firm structures and operates purchasing consortia to aggregate clients into larger buying pools, performs utility rate studies, develops feasibility cases for energy projects, and delivers expert witness representation before state commissions and FERC on regulatory and legislative matters.

Product overview

LEV operates as a single integrated energy advisory service platform providing five core service offerings: Electric & Natural Gas Market Strategy (strategic cost-saving assessments), Aggregate Energy Purchasing (consortia structuring and operation), Studies/Case Development (feasibility analyses and project business cases), Energy Regulatory Representation (expert witness and rate case support), and Utility Rate Studies (revenue requirement and rate design for utilities). These services work together as a unified advisory offering where the company serves as an independent advocate for energy purchasers, leveraging expertise in negotiation, aggregation, regulatory proceedings, and technical analysis to deliver cost savings and market advantages for industrial clients, educational institutions, municipalities, and associations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Electric & Natural Gas Market Strategies

Quantifiable outcome

• LEG members have found that their investment with LEV has been returned many times over in electricity savings and avoided costs associated with utility rate cases and legislation
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Emerging players

• Ascend Analytics: Energy analytics and advisory firm focused on decarbonization, renewable integration, and grid economics—overlaps with LEV's MISO and renewable-client advisory work, with a more technology/data-driven approach.

Broad incumbents

• CLEAResult: Large-scale energy efficiency and demand-management consulting firm serving utilities, institutions, and commercial clients—overlaps with LEV's energy strategy and procurement advisory work.
• 1898 & Co. (Burns & McDonnell): Energy advisory and consulting arm of Burns & McDonnell offering utility rate, regulatory, and procurement services across a broader geography—comparable to LEV's rate studies and regulatory representation offerings.
• ENGIE Impact: Energy and sustainability advisory firm providing procurement, carbon, and energy management services to enterprises and institutions—provides similar buyer-side advisory services at greater scale.
• ICF International: Global consulting firm with a sizable energy and utilities practice covering regulatory, rate, and market advisory—comparable in service portfolio to LEV but at much larger scale and broader geographic reach.
• Schneider Electric Energy & Sustainability Services: Global energy management and procurement advisory business offering strategic sourcing, sustainability, and energy optimization—competes with LEV on procurement strategy for large institutional buyers.

Others

• Bracewell LLP (Energy Regulatory Practice): Law firm with a deep energy regulatory practice representing clients before FERC and state commissions—adjacent to LEV's regulatory representation and expert witness services, though operating under a legal-services model.

Direct peers

• Customized Energy Solutions: Independent energy market advisory firm providing procurement, regulatory, and MISO/PJM market services to industrial, institutional, and utility clients—directly comparable to LEV's purchaser-side advisory model.
• Energy Services Group: Provider of energy procurement and contract management services for commercial, industrial, and institutional buyers—directly comparable to LEV's purchasing and contract oversight services.
• Pace Global Energy Services (Siemens Energy): Energy procurement advisory and risk management firm serving industrial and commercial buyers—closely aligned with LEV's natural gas and electricity purchasing consortium services.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/latham-ervin-associates

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Latham, Ervin, Vognsen & Associates