Don’t look now, but Idaho Power is moving into the EE big-leagues

Idaho Power for the longest time wasn’t the first utility to spring to mind when discussing the nation’s most progressive energy efficiency practitioners. That appears to be changing.

The New York Times (Sunday, Jan. 24) offers up a comprehensive look at Idaho Power’s energy efficiency programs, marveling at how aggressively Idaho Power pushes its programs in a conservative, low-energy-cost state. The Times, which correctly traces Idaho Power’s conversion to the market shocks of 2000-2001, highlights a bunch of Idaho Power approaches, from paying farmers to cut electric pump use during peak summer demand to more routine home-insulation incentive schemes. It notes approvingly a program in which 32,000 homeowners have given the utility control over their air-conditioners during hot summer days, allowing the power managers to power down their units for up to 15 minutes at a time in exchange for small monthly payments

The story hits hard on two themes that are central to the successful implementation of broad and deep energy efficiency. First is that there’s lots of cost-effective energy efficiency to be had at a very steep discount to the cost of a new power plant. And second, in the words of Idaho Power CEO LaMont Keen, “With the right incentives, people can and will modify their behavior in ways that are beneficial.”

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