The Delaware Public Service Commission gave the go-ahead to Delmarva Power’s plan to provide a suite of energy efficiency programs for residential electric customers in Delaware.
The program includes hauling off old refrigerators while paying customers up to $50. The programs have been offered at other utilitiies. Delmarva sister company BG&E even operates its own appliance stores.
The offerings will include an LED lighting program, an appliance recycling program, and a program focused on changing energy-wasting behavior. Customers could save more than $10 on their monthly energy bill by taking advantage of the offerings.
“We are committed to providing our customers with innovative solutions to help meet their energy needs, enhancing the customer experience, and developing new tools and programs to help customers save,” said Gary Stockbridge, Delmarva Power region president. “We are excited to launch new energy efficiency programs here in Delaware that will provide our customers with cost-effective and simple ways to save money and energy.”
Delmarva Power will manage the suite of programs designed to provide cost-effective energy savings opportunities for residential customers of all income levels. The programs are expected to reach more than 200,000 customers across the state, helping save nearly 10,000 megawatt-hours of electricity annually, which has the environmental benefit of removing the greenhouse gas emissions of 1,500 passenger vehicles from the road.
The LED lighting program focuses on helping customers replace outdated lights. For residential customers, Delmarva Power will provide instant in-store discounts on select ENERGY STAR-certified LED bulbs.
The appliance recycling program encourages customers to replace and recycle old, inefficient appliances. Delmarva Power will pay a customer up to $55 to allow the company to come to a resident’s home and remove old appliances, such as inefficient refrigerators, freezers, dehumidifiers and room air conditioners.
The behavior-based program is designed to motivate customers to engage in energy savings behavior through personalized reports, comparing their usage with neighbors in similar homes.Reports will provide high usage alerts and more personalized data to keep customers better informed on their energy usage and how to save energy and money.
The programs are designed to last three years and are expected to become available over the course of the next year.
Similar to other energy services Delmarva Power provides for customers, these new programs will be paid for through delivery charges on customer bills. The program will be a minimal impact on customer bills (32 cents in first year, 74 cents second year and 88 cents in the third year) and customers who take advantage of the program are expected to be able to see net savings on their monthly bill.
To learn about other ways to save money and energy, customers are encouraged to visit delmarva.com/waystosave.
