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PUR Guide 2012 Fully Updated Version

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DSM

Order 745: Challenge to Plain Old Power Markets

The marginal external benefits provided by demand response prove more than sufficient to overcome concerns that paying LMP was too expensive.
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"The rule will allow wholesale markets to shape load curves to reduce the prices." – Charles Cicchetti
Author Bio: 

Dr. Charles Cicchetti is co-founder of Pacific Economics Group and formerly was the Miller Chair in Government, Business and the Economy at the University of Southern California. Previously, he served with Arthur Andersen Economic Consulting (managing director), Putnam, Hayes & Bartlett (co-chairman), National Economic Research Associates (NERA, as senior vice president), and the Wisconsin Public Service Commission (as chairman).

The Order will extend application of load-reducing technologies and marketing to a new class of services.

Charting the DSM Sales Slump

A survey of rate case methods for sales forecasting.
Demand side management has a growing effect on energy sales. Utilities are applying five methods to account for DSM in sales forecasts. A Brattle Group survey reveals those methods and their characteristics.

Demand Growth and the New Normal

It’s tempting to attribute the recent slowdown in electricity demand growth entirely to the Great Recession, but consumption growth rates have been declining for at least 50 years. The new normal rate of demand growth likely will be about half of its historic value, with demand rising by less than 1 percent per year. This market plateau calls for a new utility strategy.

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Figure 1 - Electricity Sales Growth (Two-Decade Distributions)
Figure 2 - Cumulative Demand Growth (2010-2035)
Figure 3 - Arc of Price Responsiveness
Figure 4 - Impact of Codes and Standards on Electricity Consumption
Figure 5 - Efficiency Gains of ENERGY STAR Qualified Models
Figure 6 - ERCOT Loads in Texas (3/9/11 and 8/3/11)
Author Bio: 

Ahmad Faruqui is a principal at The Brattle Group, and Eric Shultz is a research analyst. This article was revised from Faruqui’s presentation at the Goldman Sachs Power & Utility Conference on Aug. 14, 2012. The authors acknowledge research assistance by Jennifer Palmer.

Five forces are putting the squeeze on electricity consumption.

Efficiency Beyond the Low Fruit

As efficiency programs mature, utilities and regulators will be challenged to keep producing demand-side resources. A systems-oriented approach can yield cost-effective results.

Author Bio: 

Hossein Haeri, Ph.D., is an executive director, Heidi Ochsner an associate and Jim Stewart, Ph.D., a senior associate at The Cadmus Group, Inc.

Continuous improvement requires changing practices and cultural norms.

Energy Efficiency: 15 percent by 2020?

A new survey of energy industry experts reveals a surprising consensus on the size of the energy efficiency resource. Overall, energy efficiency is expected to lower electricity consumption by 5 to 15 percent, and natural gas consumption by 5 to 10 percent. These results debunk the notion that conservation is a fad. On the contrary, they herald a new beginning for energy efficiency.