Serving low income households in a competitive environment: It's a tough job, but someone's got to do it
Conference
·
OSTI ID:20006297
In the brave new world of a more competitive electricity market, low income customers are destined to be the forgotten market segment. Given the endemic challenges of minimal incomes, high turnover, payment problems, security risks, etc., this is the last place where ambitious power marketers (or the new competitively oriented utilities) are going to look for profits. Consequently, whereas private sector research devoted to potentially profitable segments of the residential market has picked up speed (especially regarding those higher socio-economic status early adopter types who participate in pilot programs), little or no market research has been focused on the low income population. The only trouble with this scenario is that the problem of needing to serve low income customers is not going to disappear after deregulation. If anything, it will likely intensify. In recognition of these circumstances, the purpose of this paper is to focus attention on the issue of providing energy efficiency services to low income customers in a restructured electricity market. The vehicle for doing so is to present some highlight results of an extensive sequence of research focused on the low income area, conducted for the Detroit Edison Evaluation Collaborative. This research includes an evaluation of a rather innovative in-home education and energy efficiency program operated by Detroit Edison, together with what the authors believe to be an unprecedented investigation and market assessment of the low income customer population of that major Midwestern utility. The paper then concludes with some more general observations regarding the need for and feasibility of providing energy efficiency services to this customer segment.
- Research Organization:
- ACEEE, Washington, DC (US)
- OSTI ID:
- 20006297
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-980815--
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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