A comprehensive analysis of current utility services can often yield dramatic energy cost reductions with no impact on facility operations. In other cases, minor alterations to operations can result in significant savings.   Only a careful analysis of all available energy procurement options will identify the alternatives that are best for you.  The utility service analysis will include evaluating:

• Utility Rates

Often, more than one rate can be applied to a given facility.  The rate offering the lowest cost can only be determined by carefully analyzing each potentially applicable rate. This is done by modeling each rate and applying it to your facility’s historical usage.  Learn more...
 

• Deregulation

For decades, electricity was tightly regulated by the states and could only be purchased from the local utility company. That is now changing.  During the 1990’s a movement started to deregulate the electric industry and open the market to retail competition.  By the late 1990’s, states were beginning to allow various forms of competition in their retail electricity markets. Learn more...
 

• Efficiency Incentives and Rebates

Over the years, the Federal and State governments have offered incentives to encourage energy conservation, innovative technologies, and environmentally friendly alternatives to conventional systems. Some of these incentives might be available to reduce the cost of energy conservation projects at your facility.

The incentives can be structured in many different ways, and remain available for varying periods of time, depending on the intent of the program and the funding that is available. Often the incentives are based on the project cost or amount of energy savings achieved. They might be expressed in terms of $/kW saved with a maximum funding limit or as a percentage of the total project cost.  Click here for a summary of major incentive and rebate programs that were available early in 2005.

As an example, twenty state-funded incentive programs were available for fuel cell projects in seventeen states in December of 2003.  The programs offered up to $5.00/Watt, with a maximum of 60% of the project cost, in New Jersey.  Other programs range from sales tax exemptions on the equipment up to 50% of the project cost.

Currently, California offers the widest variety of incentive and rebate programs designed to encourage energy conservation and peak demand reduction by all segments of the population. Learn more...

In addition it is always possible that new state and federal programs and incentives will be launched as market (and political) conditions evolve.