Evolution of a Program: Four Years Evaluating Nonresidential Standard Performance Contracting in California

Alex Marthews, Karen Minc, Julia Larkin, Rick Ridge, and Mike Rufo, XENERGY, Inc.
Pierre Landry, Southern California Edison

Keywords

Abstract

This paper presents an overview of the evolution of the Large Nonresidential Standard Performance Contracting (LNSPC) program. It examines how it differs from previous prescriptive rebate and customized incentive programs. It also describes recent changes in the program, and comments briefly on the variety of uses to which energy efficiency service providers (EESPs) and customers put the measurement and verification (M&V) results required by the Program.

The authors have evaluated the LNSPC program since its inception in 1998 (XENERGY 1999, 2001a). Our most recent evaluation includes a broad, statewide process and tracking-data evaluation of the 2000 and 2001 LNSPC Programs (XENERGY 2001b). This focused on interviewing customer and EESP participants in both years, describing how the Program worked, estimating self-report-based net-to-gross ratios for each year, reviewing and integrating the results of utility tracking data. Analysis of potential near-term market effects was not a primary focus, as it had been in the two previous evaluations.

The paper presents the main recommendations developed by the 2000/2001 LNSPC Program evaluation, and examines tracking data trends over the four years of the Program. It
contains the following sections:

Program History
Overview of Four-Year Program Trends
- Tracking Data Trends
- Customer and EESP Participant Survey Data Trends
Net-to-Gross Ratios (Free-Ridership)
Comparison of California's SPC Program with Other States
Recommendations