The energy efficiency challenge: Save the baby throw out the bathwater

Chamberlin, J H; Herman, P

doi:10.1016/1040-6190(95)90140-X

Title: The energy efficiency challenge: Save the baby throw out the bathwater

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Abstract

In the more competitive, restructured industry that is emerging, electricity providers will need to build on what has been learned about DSM in the past 15 years, focusing on providing information and technical services, reducing customer risk through guarantees, and solving customer financing problems. Efficiency solutions that make sense for each customer may be the only ones that get used. Over the last 15 years, electric utilities have spent billions of dollars on demand-side management activities. The Energy Information Administration reports that utilites spent $2.8 billion on DSM in 1993 alone. Through these programs, utilites claim to have saved 40,000 MW of demand and 44,000 GWh of energy, and millions of participating customers have saved billions of dollars. But the development and implementation of these programs have not been without controversy. For the past 15 years, DSM`s advocates and critics have debated the most fundamental aspects of the selection and evaluation of DSM activities. Although protagonists have argued their views within the context of monopoly regulation, it has become apparent in recent years that the basic structure of the industry is undergoing fundamental change. Today, the debate regarding the role of DSM and, more gnerally, the provision of efficiency servicesmore »« less

Authors:: Chamberlin, J H; Herman, P

Publication Date:: Fri Dec 01 00:00:00 EST 1995

OSTI Identifier:: 376991

Resource Type:: Journal Article

Journal Name:: Electricity Journal

Additional Journal Information:: Journal Volume: 8; Journal Issue: 10; Other Information: PBD: Dec 1995

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

Subject:: 29 ENERGY PLANNING AND POLICY; ELECTRIC POWER INDUSTRY; ENERGY EFFICIENCY; HISTORICAL ASPECTS; LOAD MANAGEMENT; FINANCIAL INCENTIVES; POWER DEMAND; ENERGY MANAGEMENT

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                    Chamberlin, J H, and Herman, P. The energy efficiency challenge: Save the baby throw out the bathwater.  United States: N. p., 1995. 
        Web.  doi:10.1016/1040-6190(95)90140-X.

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                    Chamberlin, J H, & Herman, P. The energy efficiency challenge: Save the baby throw out the bathwater.  United States.  https://doi.org/10.1016/1040-6190(95)90140-X

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                    Chamberlin, J H, and Herman, P. 1995.  
        "The energy efficiency challenge: Save the baby throw out the bathwater".  United States.  https://doi.org/10.1016/1040-6190(95)90140-X.

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@article{osti_376991,

  title        = {The energy efficiency challenge: Save the baby throw out the bathwater},

  author       = {Chamberlin, J H and Herman, P},

  abstractNote = {In the more competitive, restructured industry that is emerging, electricity providers will need to build on what has been learned about DSM in the past 15 years, focusing on providing information and technical services, reducing customer risk through guarantees, and solving customer financing problems. Efficiency solutions that make sense for each customer may be the only ones that get used. Over the last 15 years, electric utilities have spent billions of dollars on demand-side management activities. The Energy Information Administration reports that utilites spent $2.8 billion on DSM in 1993 alone. Through these programs, utilites claim to have saved 40,000 MW of demand and 44,000 GWh of energy, and millions of participating customers have saved billions of dollars. But the development and implementation of these programs have not been without controversy. For the past 15 years, DSM`s advocates and critics have debated the most fundamental aspects of the selection and evaluation of DSM activities. Although protagonists have argued their views within the context of monopoly regulation, it has become apparent in recent years that the basic structure of the industry is undergoing fundamental change. Today, the debate regarding the role of DSM and, more gnerally, the provision of efficiency services to utility customers continues. Here the authors seek to summarize the important lessons learned and to suggest the changes that these lessons imply for DSM activities.},

  doi          = {10.1016/1040-6190(95)90140-X},

  url          = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/376991},
  journal      = {Electricity Journal},
number       = 10,

  volume       = 8,

  place        = {United States},

  year         = {Fri Dec 01 00:00:00 EST 1995},

  month        = {Fri Dec 01 00:00:00 EST 1995}

}

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