City Utilities enhances energy-saving incentives for businesses

The utility’s commercial lighting program offers commercial electric customers up to $5,000 in rebates if the companies switch to more efficient light fixtures.

Companies can participate in one of two ways. Those with T12 fluorescent light fixtures, commonly found in office environments, can change to more efficient T8 lamps, and companies can also improve high-bay lighting fixtures, found in environments with very high ceilings such as warehouses or factories.

Cara Shaefer, director of energy management and conservation for CU, said several companies have expressed initial interest in the program, though none have pursued the lighting rebates. The process takes several weeks to complete, including a worksheet, application form and on-site review.

“There is upfront work on the customer’s side before the pre-evaluation is scheduled,” Shaefer said, “but I am confident that we will have a great response and participation in this program.”

The savings can be significant – a typical customer who upgrades 100 of the old T12, four-bulb fixtures to T8 fixtures with electronic ballasts could save more than $2,000 a year. Similar savings would result from changing high-bay lighting, which would cut demand by 25 kilowatts.

“This is probably one of the most cost-effective programs that we have, because typically lighting is one of the lowest-hanging fruits on the tree,” Shaefer said. “People can make a change and can typically get a pretty fast payback on upgrading … to more efficient lighting.”

But Shaefer said the program is about more than just saving money for businesses. She points out that energy-efficient lighting can improve a company’s working environment by providing brighter, cleaner light for employees.

The commercial lighting program is one of several energy-saving measures businesses can take advantage of from CU, including on-site energy audits and rebates on compact fluorescent light bulbs.

Wonders of Wildlife participated in the on-site energy audit program in early 2005, according to Director of Operations Clifford Clark. He said several possible energy-saving changes were pointed out, including timers on the outdoor landscaping system that were over-watering, and redundancies in motor operations for some of the facility’s pumps.

“We corrected those systems and cut our electrical bills considerably,” Clark said. “The first full year we reduced our total utility consumption by a little more than 25 percent.” Clark noted that consumption continues to decrease at the facility, though the exact amount of money saved is unclear as utility rates have changed. He said, however, that the decision to have an audit performed was about more than money.

“We’re based on conservation of our natural resources, and we didn’t want to be wasting resources within our building,” Clark said. “You can’t be true to yourself if you’re not following some of the guidelines you’re trying to teach other people about.”

Energy conservation is an ongoing goal for CU because of increasing demand, which was highlighted by the June 2006 approval of a new $697 million coal-fired power plant to meet the growing need for energy.

An April 2006 study from Austin, Texas-based Frontier Associates LLC stated that CU can save as much as $40 million over the next 11 years by implementing a series of energy conservation initiatives, including a commercial lighting program.

Frontier Associates study

Of the eight programs recommended in Frontier Associates LLC’s April 2006 study for City Utilities, three dealt with commercial customers:

• An efficient lighting program, which would give incentives to commercial and industrial customers who purchase and install energy-efficient

lighting in both retrofit and new construction;

• An efficient cooling equipment program, which would provide similar incentives for purchase and installation of energy-efficient cooling systems; and

• An efficient motors program, which would give similar incentives for purchasing and installing efficient motors.

Significant Savings

The study states that, if all the recommendations were followed, CU could see significant savings:

• Peak demand energy savings - 22.54 megawatts through 2017

• Annual gas savings - 856,801 million BTU through 2017

• Water savings - 178 million gallons per year through 2017

• Net financial benefits - $38.9 million