Study lights the way for utility energy efficiency programmes

clipped from www.energyefficiencynews.com A study by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) reveals the key factors for achieving high levels of utility sector energy efficiency. In the last few years, energy efficiency has gone from being a ‘token gesture’ to a major component of energy policies in a number of states in the US. Minnesota, Illinois and Ohio, for example, have established utility sector energy efficiency programmes requiring annual savings of 1.5% and 2%, respectively. And other states such as New York, Maryland and Vermont are heading in the same direction. The ACEEE report, Meeting Aggressive New State Goals for Utility-Sector Energy Efficiency: Examining Key Factors Associated with High Savings, identified the 14 states that have achieved the greatest savings and looked for the keys to their success. “There is no single ‘magic bullet’ solution, but we’ve hopefully identified some elements that can help states develop strategies to meet the energy efficiency challenges they face.”