Four Years Experience of the Nation’s First Energy Efficiency Utility: Balancing Resource Acquisition & Market Transformation under a Performance Contract

Blair Hamilton, Efficiency Vermont/Vermont Energy Investment Corporation
Michael Dworkin, Vermont Public Service Board

Keywords

Abstract

Competing priorities and bottom line objectives require innovation and flexibility in any business model. The same holds true in the field of energy efficiency administration and management. Since March 2000, Efficiency Vermont, a system-benefits-funded statewide “energy efficiency utility,” has been the sole provider of statewide efficiency programs that have delivered verified, highly cost-effective energy resources, now providing approximately 3% of Vermont’s electric energy requirements. At the same time, nation-leading market shares have been achieved for a number of efficient products and significant efforts have been applied to attain market transformation and distributional equity objectives. One of the key factors responsible for the broad success of Efficiency Vermont is the administrative structure of the negotiated performance contract between Efficiency Vermont and the Vermont Public Service Board. With the structure, scope and flexibility of this administrative arrangement, Efficiency Vermont has adaptively managed efficiency investments to obtain results that balance many conflicting objectives.