|
|
Home
About Western
Power Marketing
Transmission
Jobs
EPTC
Energy Services |
Report, utilities find energy efficiency a major resource
The United States could cut its growth in energy use by at least half with energy efficiency alone, according to a new report from the National Action Plan for Energy Efficiency. "Vision for 2025: Developing a Framework for Change" sets a goal of achieving all cost-effective energy-efficiency improvements throughout the country by 2025. If that goal is achieved, Americans will spend $100 billion less for energy in 2025 than they would otherwise and will avoid emitting 500 million metric tons of carbon dioxide per year. The nation will also achieve $500 billion in net savings from its energy efficiency investments. The report outlines 10 implementation goals to achieve those savings. They include policies, incentives, delivery mechanisms, metrics and utility billing systems that would encourage energy efficiency, measure its effectiveness and reward utilities for successful energy-efficiency programs. Template for overcoming barriersLaunched in 2006, the National Action Plan for Energy Efficiency is a framework to help states, municipalities and utilities develop energy efficiency strategies. The Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy facilitate the program, but a diverse leadership group is responsible for developing the Action Plan. More than 60 investor- and publicly-owned utilities (including several Western customers), state agencies, businesses, consumer advocates and environmental and industry organizations participate. In its first year, the leadership group identified obstacles to adopting energy efficiency and developed five recommendations for overcoming them:
"Vision for 2025" continues the discussion on how to implement the recommendations. Along with the 10 implementation goals, the report describes what 2025 might look like if the vision is achieved and offers an initial strawman approach for measuring progress. Stakeholders bring differing viewsThe American Public Power Association has endorsed "Vision for 2025" and pledges to continue its own efforts to promote energy efficiency. "Energy efficiency is, in most cases, the least-cost option for meeting load growth," said APPA Environmental Services Engineer J.P. Blackford. "The Action Plan serves to remind utilities of this inexpensive resource." John Holt, senior manager of Generation and Fuel for the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, is a member of the leadership group. NRECA, he said, endorsed most of the recommendations and offered several comments that were incorporated into the most recent report. "We wanted the plan to reflect the best interests of our members," he recalled. "With so many stakeholders at the table, everyone had to compromise on some point." Another member of the leadership group, Mark McGahey of Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, agreed. "It was a compromise all the way, but the surprising thing was how much consensus there was," he said. The leadership group offered him the opportunity to hear different perspectives, McGahey added. “One of the best aspects of the Action Plan is the wide collaboration and cooperation among very different stakeholders,” said Jan Schori, general manager of Sacramento Municipal Utility District. “We were all moving toward a critically important goal with life-changing impacts.” Utilities take action nowWestern customers in the leadership group illustrate the different phases of utility energy-efficiency initiatives. Tri-State is ramping up energy-efficiency and demand-side management efforts after years of focusing on other issues. "Now, with rising energy costs, growing demand and tighter environmental regulations on new generation, some sort of energy-efficiency plan is a necessity," McGahey explained. Many Tri-State members are developing or have already launched energy-efficiency programs, while others are just coming around to the value of efficiency, he said. "I believe the Action Plan will serve as a guide to those utilities on what energy efficiency measures might be worth pursuing in their circumstances." SMUD and Great River Energy, have long-standing successful DSM and energy-efficiency programs. "If there is a DSM expert among cooperatives, Great River is it," McGahey said. Leaders in efficiency set exampleGreat River's programs show what can be accomplished through energy efficiency and load control. Out of 330,000 residential members that have central air conditioners, more than 130,000 participate in the cooperative's cycled air-conditioning program, reducing critical summer peaks by about 125 MW. The Energy Star partner also offers a menu of grants and rebates for energy efficiency improvements, awarding over $5 million in 2006. On January 1, 2008, GRE will also be rolling out its new wholesale rate structure that includes a critical peak pricing component that is designed to change consumption habits. One reason Great River' has such well-established efficiency programs, admits Member Services Manager Gary Connett, is that many of the Action Plan’s goals are already in Minnesota policy. "For example, Minnesota has an energy-efficiency goal requiring electric and gas utilities to save 1.5 percent of their annual energy sales,” said Connett who serves in the leadership group. “Utilities must integrate energy efficiency into their resource plans, and standards are being developed for measuring and verifying energy savings – all of which are in the National Action Plan." SMUD, another long-time leader in energy efficiency, has implemented three Action Plan recommendations—placing high priority on energy efficiency as a resource, making a long-term commitment to implementing cost-effective measures and educating end-users on its value. The board set an aggressive goal of reducing energy consumption by 15 percent by 2018. A new SMUD initiative, Compact with the Customer, is evaluating advanced meters as a tool to encourage customers to shift use to off-peak hours. The board is laying the groundwork to provide stable funding for energy-efficiency improvements—recommendation No. 4—by approving a 10-year budget to accomplish its 10-year energy-efficiency plan. A proposed plan to redesign rates and provide customers with automated price signal technology to take advantage of the different rate schedules would address the fifth recommendation. Resources for all utilitiesWhile large utilities pioneer energy efficiency strategies, smaller power providers seldom have the resources to develop such programs, let alone evaluate them. That is where the Action Plan can help, Holt said. "Basically, it should function as a collection place for best practices and case studies," he said. NRECA and APPA offer extensive tools to help members improve efficiency, but a central resource dedicated to energy efficiency would be useful to professional associations as well. "The Action Plan will help APPA to identify new products to aid members in adopting energy-efficiency measures," said Blackford. "We're already adding new courses and publications, including the “Easy Steps to Energy Efficiency: What Works for Public Power,” a guide to successful programs and strategies." NRECA has summarized the findings of "Vision for 2025" and distributed it to members through its environmental bulletin. The summary will also be posted on NRECA's public Web site. Measurement system neededThe leadership group will focus next on refining the strawman approach to measuring progress, an essential task, but one that Holt hopes won't overshadow implementation. "There are already some mechanisms in place, such as in the Clean Air Act, that could provide a good starting point," he said. Whatever basis the leadership group uses, everyone agrees that a measurement system will have to resolve the difference between IOUs and cooperatives. Schori said that an effective system must be able to account for individual stakeholders’ efforts, as well as for common efforts, such as regulatory policymaking. “And it has to be fair and easily-interpreted,” she said. “Those are tall orders, but the leadership group is up to the task.” Blackford agreed that smaller utilities need a user-friendly way to measure progress for the staff person who is already doing two or three jobs. "Without a benchmarking method, utilities with fewer resources have a hard time justifying the investment in energy efficiency programs," he noted. Regional variables also need to be accounted for, McGahey stated. "Tri-State has tried to develop customized energy-efficiency and demand-management programs because Wyoming doesn't work in the same way as Nebraska," he said. "We've finally reached a point where decision-makers are realizing that programs—and results—don't have to be perfectly equal. That's a critical shift in thinking." More supporters get on boardPerhaps the most critical shift in thinking has taken place already, driven by the Action Plan and utility interest. Many states have, or are considering adopting energy efficiency plans, a process that could speed up when measurements are completed and published, said Connett. “State agencies and utilities will be able to see what others are doing, and how they stack up to those efforts. I suspect that the state of Minnesota and its utilities will measure up very well,” he added proudly. Electric Power Research Institute and Edison Electric Institute recently launched separate energy efficiency research initiatives. Tri-State is one of 70 utilities funding EPRI's Dynamic Energy Efficiency Initiative. McGahey hopes that the Action Plan will eventually incorporate technologies coming out of the two initiatives. When the National Action Plan for Energy Efficiency is finalized, public power providers will have played a strong role in shaping it. Blackford said he is proud of that participation for more than one reason. "We have to lead by example," he declared. "Ultimately, the success of any energy efficiency plan requires consumer buy-in. If power providers don't practice what they preach, neither will end-users." |
Previous issues
|
|||||
Resources
|
People |
Related articles
|
||||
