Utilities & Regulators

Utilities must look at many variables in developing their integrated resource plans to serve customer load reliably and cost effectively.

In doing that, they must assess the appropriate balance of investments in various types of generating units, transmission infrastructure, demand side options including energy efficiency and demand response, pricing offerings, and the customer service impacts of each.

EcoMetric leverages real-world implementation and evaluation experience and industry insights to accurately forecast utilities’ energy efficiency, and distributed generation markets; design & improve their demand side management programs; and support their integrated resource planning process. Our staff offers support in program planning, including potential assessments for renewables, energy efficiency, storage, and demand response. In addition, we can apply these findings to offer options to offset the need for capital investment through non-wires alternatives. We also have expertise in assessing pricing options to ensure adequate cost recovery and appropriate cost allocation.

Services we offer to improve your planning and forecasting include the following:

• End use market assessment and baseline studies to measure the penetration and saturation of technologies
• Assess the potential for gas and electricity savings across every sector, market segment and technology option. Conduct a detailed, bottom-up assessment of energy and greenhouse gas savings opportunities that are both cost-effective and realistically achievable
• Conventional economic modeling of energy demand has characterized technological choice as an investment decision driven primarily by the relationship between capital costs and operating costs. Our staff are adept in exploring the impacts of new technologies on your program offerings

Advanced meter infrastructure (AMI) investment is real, and can be leveraged by skilled evaluators to supplement, build-upon, or even replace traditional EM&V.

EcoMetric’s Advanced M&V models, tools, and protocols are designed to take advantage of more widely available electric and natural gas AMI investments. We use AMI data to verify program savings, as well as provide deeper insights into the time-value of efficiency resources. EcoMetric’s library of advanced M&V tools has the capability to both utilize traditional statistical modeling and adapt newer algorithms, such as artificial neural networks, from other industries to improve evaluation accuracy while reducing costs.

Benefits of EcoMetric’s Advanced M&V Tools:

• Tested and cross validated models compliant with IPMVP, NMEC, ASHRAE, and CALTRACK.
• Leverage existing AMI and customer operational data to improve accuracy
• Transparent, well documented, and proven modeling techniques

Providing key market insights to inform effective program strategies.

EcoMetric conducts market research that leverages existing industry networks as well as proven outreach strategies to continually discover and hear from new voices and perspectives in critical energy-related markets. By employing both traditional and creative data collection methods, EcoMetric strives to document quantifiable market facts, such as prices, consumer preferences, supply chain characteristics, and policy trends. Additionally, we work to uncover nuances in perceptions and approaches of those actors influencing market activity. A suite of quantitative and qualitative research methods allows EcoMetric to deliver comprehensive market portraits to our clients, empowering them to make informed and effective programmatic and policy decisions.

Recognized benefit:

• Holistic view of markets
• Clear understanding of market trends and dynamics
• Nuanced insights into how market actors think and make decisions