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Electricity

Ready, Set, Go: Campuses Nationwide Compete for Water & Energy Savings

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By Sonya Ulen
Director, Load Response, Constellation Energy

On Monday, more than 170 colleges and universities across the country will begin competing to see who can reduce the most energy and water in their residence halls by April 23.  This is part of Lucid’s Campus Conservation Nationals (CCN), which is sponsored by Constellation. 

Last year, winners DePauw University and Humboldt State University saved an average of 25.8% on electric usage and an average of 15.4% on water, respectively. This year, Constellation is excited to be part of the competition, which has a goal of saving 1…
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Phase 4 of Direct Access in California: Update & Next Steps

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Customer applications in Phase 4 – the final phase – of California’s Direct Access reopening will be accepted on January 13, 2012.  The cap for Phase 4 of Direct Access in California is smaller for businesses and organizations than in previous phases. There’s only 10 percent (or about 850,000 annual MWh) of available load in the final phase of this limited market reopening.  In each of the prior three phases, non-residential electricity customers in California have shown great interest in reserving space under the cap, and the same type of response – where many businesses and organizations will simultaneously submit…
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CSAPR Rule Postponed

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On December 30, 2011 the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued a ruling to stay the controversial Cross-State Air Pollutions Rule (CSAPR), which was scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2012. The CSAPR regulation is designed to reduce power plant emissions in 27 states that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) claims contribute to harmful levels of Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) and Nitrogen Oxide (Nox), byproducts of the combustion process.

The D.C. Circuit Court is scheduled to hold hearings as early as April 2012 to rule on full merits of case. In the meantime the EPA…
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Decrease Expected for Purchased Cost Indifference Amount (PCIA) on California Direct Access Electric Customer Bills

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Direct Access customers in California should take note of a change in non-bypassable charges as it directly impacts their electricity costs.

What are Non-Bypassable Charges?
Non-bypassable charges include utility charges that all customers must pay, including transmission and distribution charges.  Direct Access customers must also pay a non-bypassable charge referred to as the Purchased Cost Indifference Amount (PCIA), that is the Direct Access customer’s share of “stranded costs” associated with purchases made by the utility before the customer left utility service.

The PCIA rate paid by customers varies depending on when the customer leaves utility service, referred to…
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A Unique Chance for Commercial & Educational Buildings to Get Paid to Reduce Energy

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By Sonya Ulen
Director, Load Response, Constellation Energy

If you could see just how much energy or water that is used in your building, or even the floor that you work on, would you stop to take a look?

Some businesses have dedicated energy managers that monitor electric power use and water consumption for their organization. But now everyone can have a “behind the scenes view” because energy monitoring has reached a whole new level — now businesses can install customer-facing software platform and kiosk that will allow their employees to view, compare, and share their building consumption…
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Snowpack’s Influence On Winter Heating Demand

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Both natural gas and power prices continue to experience considerable downward pressure due to the persistent above average temperatures present in the eastern two-thirds of the country.  Weather-related demand, which is typically measured in Heating Degree Days (HDD’s), has been significantly lower than normal this winter.  

This lack of demand has delayed the price support that we typically see at this point of the heating season.  The HDD’s from Nov. 1, 2011 to the current day are -13% lower than the same period last year and are -8% lower than the 30-year normal.  As a result, the prompt-month natural gas…
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