June 1, 2009

ACEEE ADDS OH & PA TO GROWING LIST OF STATE ANALYSES ON ENERGY EFFICIENCY OPPORTUNITIES

This spring, ACEEE released reports for Ohio and Pennsylvania as part of our series of analyses on state opportunities for energy efficiency and other clean energy resources dubbed the State Clean Energy Resource Project. Major energy efficiency legislation enacted in both states in 2008 heralded their induction to a growing list of states that are primed to implement energy efficiency policies and programs to meet long-term growth in energy demand while creating thousands of new jobs and keeping consumer energy bills low.

ACEEE released The Potential for Energy-Efficiency in Ohio on March 25 during a press conference held at the historic Lazarus Building in downtown Columbus, Ohio. The report concluded that the 10 policy recommendations analyzed could save Ohio $19 billion while creating 32,000 new jobs by 2025. The event drew several dozen attendees, including Governor Strickland's energy adviser, Mark Shanahan of the Ohio Air Quality Development Authority and several members of the Ohio State Legislature. The report and its results were met with much anticipation, evident by the fact that movement to incorporate many of ACEEE's policy recommendations into state law has already begun. Nonprofit organizations in Ohio, led by the Ohio Environmental Council, have been conducting frequent meetings with state representatives identified as potential efficiency champions in order to develop and agree on the legislative language that could see many of these policies enacted into state law.

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On May 1, ACEEE released Potential for Energy Efficiency, Demand Response, and Onsite Solar Energy in Pennsylvania, which is one of the most comprehensive analyses completed as part of the State Clean Energy Resource Project. Partnering with VEIC, Summit Blue, ICF International, and Synapse Energy Economics, ACEEE led this analysis of the energy efficiency potential for electricity, natural gas, fuel oil, and propane end-use sectors. The analysis also examines the potential for onsite solar energy, demand resource, and combined heat and power (CHP) in Pennsylvania. The report suggests a suite of energy efficiency and solar energy policies and programs beyond existing commitments in Pennsylvania that would help reap substantial economic benefits, creating 27,000 new jobs and saving its consumers $4.8 billion in 2025, and act as a significant energy resource, meeting nearly a quarter of the Commonwealth’s electricity needs and 15% of its natural gas needs by 2025. The report was released in Philadelphia at a home that recently received a home energy audit and energy efficiency upgrades, calling attention to the types of energy efficiency program activities recommended in the report. ACEEE is now working to disseminate the results of the report to interested stakeholders, including the utilities, state legislature, and the Keystone Energy Efficiency Alliance (KEEA).

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