by Rebecca Walker — March 17, 2010—eMeter, a global leader in Smart Grid Management software, announced that the PowerCentsDC program it designed and managed in partnership with Pepco and Smart Meter Pilot Program, Inc (SMPPI), has won the “Best Pricing and Demand Response Program” award from the Association for Energy Service Professionals (AESP).
The program is the first pilot in the electric utility industry to test the response of residential customers to three distinct dynamic pricing options under one program.
The PowerCentsDC program involved approximately 1,000 Pepco customers in the District of Columbia from July 2008 to October 2009. Participating customers were given the choice between hourly pricing, critical peak pricing, and critical peak rebates and received detailed monthly energy reports and smart thermostats in an effort to help them better understand and manage their energy use.
“We worked with eMeter to design a program with variables that had never been tested together,” said Rick Morgan, DC Public Service Commissioner and SMPPI chairman. “We believe PowerCentsDC is an important step forward as it demonstrates the potential benefits of dynamic pricing for the consumer.”
eMeter partnered with Pepco and SMPPI to deliver, operate, and manage a fully-integrated solution. The solution included smart meters, smart thermostats, and eMeter’s consumer engagement software solution, Energy Engage. Through the program Web site, customers had access to relevant, up-to-date information regarding their electricity usage, costs and their carbon footprint. Sixty-three percent of respondents indicated that the program helped motivate them to use less electricity overall and 68 percent indicated it made them more aware of their environmental impact of their energy usage.
For more information, see the eMeter Web site.
