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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

 

Northeast Utilities' Lighting Catalog Program is a relatively simple program designed to correct the market imbalance between conventional residential lighting sources and far more efficient, yet more costly, energy-efficient lighting products. NU developed a mail order program, based on a catalog that is circulated to its residential customers, to increase the penetration of energy-efficient lighting in the residential sector by offering subsidized prices for the equipment. For instance, while integral compact fluorescent lamps have list prices ranging between $15-22, NU offers the same lamps to its customers for $4 each!

The program began in September of 1990 and follows a basic process. First, the program is marketed using advertisements in newspapers and bill stuffers, both of which refer customers to a toll-free number: 1-800-5-BRIGHT. By calling the number, the customer receives the lighting catalog which describes 38 energy-efficient lighting products and includes an order form with a postage-paid envelope and a phone number that customers can call if they have questions. (Orders are handled by an independent contractor.) All products ordered carry a 30-day money back guarantee for anyone who is not completely satisfied with any product purchased though the program.

The program to date has outstripped its planners' projections. The initial print run of 100,000 catalogs was expected to last a year but was depleted after 6 months. Between September 1990 and October 1992 38,700 orders were filled, with orders averaging 10.7 products each. The estimated average savings per Lighting Catalog order is approximately 510 kWh/year. The program has resulted in annual energy savings of 19,800 MWh and lifecycle energy savings of more than 198 GWh. To date only 3% of NU's eligible customers have participated in the program.

NU's customers have spent a total of $1.8 million on products ordered from the Lighting Catalog program. Through 1992, NU spent a total of approximately $3.9 million on the program, or just over $100 per participant, compared to the average customer cost of about $50. The utility's cost for 1992 resulted in a cost of saved energy of 2.62¢/kWh at a 5% discount rate, although the first year cost of saved energy was considerably higher due to program startup costs.

NU has avoided restraint-of-trade criticism by encouraging manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors, and certain retailers to bid on the supply of catalog products. However, as the market changes, it seems likely that the Lighting Catalog prices will have to be increased in order to allow for fair competition with retail suppliers. Eventually, the Lighting Catalog will be phased out in favor of a mail-in rebate program that emphasizes retail availability of energy-efficient lighting products.

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Spectrum Neighborhood Program is a residential direct installation program that began in June of 1991 and provides free, cost-effective electricity conservation services to Northeast Utilities' Western Massachusetts Electric Company (WMECO) residential customers, with a special focus on low income customers. The program is currently offered in urban areas where, in a single visit, technicians install energy-efficient lighting, water heater tank wraps, pipe insulation, faucet aerators, and high-efficiency showerheads. In addition, refrigerator coils are cleaned, air conditioning filters are replaced, and hot water tank thermostat settings are lowered. Each customer is also provided with information on energy conservation.

The Neighborhood program is marketed aggressively to targeted neighborhoods. One to two days after a promotional mailer has arrived, program crews distribute brochures throughout the neighborhood describing the program, repeating the phone number that customers can use to sign up for the service, and informing customers of the time period that the program will be offered. One day after the brochures are distributed, a canvasser travels door-to-door, making appointments with those customers who have not responded by telephone. If possible, the canvasser will make the appointment for the same day. The program van is parked on the street receiving service and a sign is placed next to it informing passers-by of the program and soliciting walk-up appointments.

All crew members carry two-way radios and work within each neighborhood as a team. The radios facilitate communication among installers, and improve the overall efficiency of the installment process, allowing for rescheduling of appointments and requests for replacement supplies. The radios are also helpful in neighborhoods where safety concerns are an issue.

Northeast Utilities estimates that annual savings in 1991 were 564 kWh per participant. With over 4,500 participants, the program saved a total of 2,580 MWh in its first year of implementation. Lifecycle energy savings for the measures installed between the program start in mid-1991 and September, 1992 total approximately 30.7 GWh. To date installers have performed 45 retrofits per day, with each visit taking about 45 minutes. As of September, 1992, 9,144 installations have been completed in the WMECO service territory.

One of the biggest assets of the program is that it takes advantage of the educational opportunity presented to installers. Each time installers enter a home they raise awareness of the value of the energy efficiency measures to both the customer and the utility. In turn, the customers pass along their positive experiences and new-found knowledge to friends and acquaintances in their own and other communities, making the reach of the program extend beyond just the participant group.

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Boston Edison Company (BECo) has been encouraging the use of efficient lighting in homes in its service territory through mail-in rebates, "instant rebates", and special promotions since 1987. Through 1991, over 480,000 energy-efficient lamps have been distributed, of which 272,000 were OSRAM 15-watt compact fluorescent lamps which were sold by Lions Club members for $3 each to 52,308 residential customers. The promotion’s success stimulated over 95 print news stories in local and national newspapers, including The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and the Boston Globe.

BECo’s Residential Efficient Lighting Program (formerly called Lite Lights) has two primary long-term goals: to increase customer demand for energy-efficient lighting and to enhance the availability of efficient lighting technologies in retail markets in the Boston area. To accomplish these goals, The Residential Efficient Lighting Program has evolved significantly, thanks in large part to continual feedback and program adjustments and detailed process and impact evaluations.

BECo began the Residential Efficient Lighting Program in 1987 by offering mail-in rebates of $1.50-5.00 on qualifying efficient lamps. Customers could also use a mail order service, coordinated by a contractor selected by BECo through competitive bid, to receive rebates on their purchases in the form of monthly electric bill deductions.

In 1989, "instant rebates" became available whereby customers could walk into BECo’s Energy Centers (bill paying centers) and get instant rebates on the purchase of efficient lamps. At that time, compact fluorescents became eligible for rebates equal to 66% of the purchase price, and halogen rebates were 25% of the purchase price. Additionally, in 1991 instant rebates were introduced at a select number of retail stores.

Between 1987 and 1991, The Residential Efficient Lighting Program saved 19 GWh in annual energy savings, with 171 GWh lifecycle savings. Annual winter peak capacity savings have totalled more than 10 MW for the period 1987 to 1991, with summer peak capacity savings totalling about 2.1 MW. These savings are discounted to account for anticipated premature bulb removal as well as free riders.

Total utility costs of the program from 1987 to 1991 have totalled $8,334,000. Expenditures increased significantly between 1989 and 1990, in part to accommodate the Lite for Sight promotion but also as a result of the New England Collaborative DSM program planning and design process. The 1990 expenditure of $5,420,000 was fourteen times greater than the 1989 expenditure of $392,000. In 1991, costs were $2,028,000.

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Wisconsin Electric’s Appliance Turn-In Program (APTI) began in 1987 as part of the utility’s comprehensive Smart Money program. APTI was the nation’s first large scale residential appliance turn-in program. The goal of the program is to get underutilized but operable second refrigerators, freezers, and room air conditioners out of service and properly dismantled. These appliances are removed by Wisconsin Electric at no charge and in return, the customer receives their choice of a $25 check or $50 U.S. savings bond for a room air conditioner, and a $50 check or $100 U.S. savings bond for a refrigerator or freezer.

Through 1991, over 240,000 residential appliances have been picked up and properly dismantled through APTI. Refrigerators account for around 60% of the appliances turned in, while room air conditioners account for 30%, and freezers account for 10%. All of the collected appliances are recycled. Metal components are recycled and the refrigerants, which contain chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), are drained and stored for re-use. Over 30 tons of CFCs have been recovered from old appliances. All appliance capacitors are removed at a processing facility and sent to an EPA-approved facility to be destroyed.

Helping the environment while helping the customer financially is the basic theme of the APTI program’s marketing push. Wisconsin Electric has used media advertising for the program, has placed program information in new appliance dealer showrooms, has benefitted from word of mouth, and continues to run bill inserts to educate its customers about the program and its 800 telephone number. The actual delivery of the program is carried out by 8 to 10 cartage contractors who test and then pick up the used appliances, and take them to a dismantling facility located in Milwaukee.

From 1987 to 1991 the Appliance Turn-In Program has resulted in demand savings of 20.8 MW and energy savings of 62.9 GWh. In 1991, the program produced demand savings of 5.2 MW and 8.2 GWh of energy savings. More than $10 million in incentives have been paid out since the inception of the APTI program.

Wisconsin Electric estimates that the APTI program has avoided burning the electrical demand of the old appliances. In addition, over 452 tons of sulfur dioxide emissions, which are a primary cause of acid rain, were avoided. Wisconsin Electric estimates that if all the appliances gathered by the APTI program were buried in one landfill, the landfill would cover 10 acres and be 15 feet deep!

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