Ricky Gratz

OPOWER CONFIDENTIAL: DO NOT DISTRIBUTE
Low Income Engagement:
Beyond Efficiency
Ricky Gratz, Manager, Market Development
& Regulatory Affairs – East
Prepared for NEUAC 2014
Increasing strains on low income energy
efficiency
Low
customer
reach
Increasing
need
for relief
Decreasing
budgets
More important than ever to maximize the impact
of dollars spent
OPOWER CONFIDENTIAL: DO NOT DISTRIBUTE
We analyzed data from the 500K+ low
income customers we reach today and
external sources
What we found:
1.
Low income households are not uniform
2.
Low income does not imply low usage
3.
4.
On every dimension – home ownership, home type, language, age – diversity is great
In some geographies, low income households actually use more energy than general population
Low income populations can engage at impactful levels
Once aware of available resources, low income populations exhibit high savings and
participation rates
Low income programs can be cost-effective
Auto-enroll and some traditional low income energy efficiency programs can be cost-effective
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3
1
Low income households are diverse
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1
Low income housing characteristics vary
greatly between utilities and regions
Percent of population living
in single-family homes
Difference between low income
and non-low income
30%
Percent of population that
owns their home
Difference between low income
and non-low income
25%
20%
25%
15%
20%
10%
15%
5%
10%
0%
5%
0%
-5%
-10%
-15%
-5%
-20%
-10%
-25%
-15%
-30%
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Low income households can have higher
or lower energy consumption
Energy consumed
Percent difference of energy consumed by low-income and non-low
income
30%
20%
Percent difference of kWh
2
10%
0%
-10%
-20%
-30%
-40%
-50%
California IOU 1 California IOU 2 Midwest IOU 1 Midwest IOU 2 Southwest IOU Mid-Atlantic IOU Northeast IOU
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2
There are potential physical and
behavioral drivers to high consumption
OPOWER Research of Low Income Consumers
Have adopted fewer measures to reduce energy
• 50% more likely to have window A/C
• 25% more likely to have space heaters
• 50% less likely to have low-flow showerhead
• Less likely to have CFL bulbs
Differences in housing stock
Level of comfort required by elderly population
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3
Auto-enroll programs create deeper
reach into the population
Reach of various traditional low income programs
Median number of participants
45,000
20,000
10,000
1,750
Weatherization
300
New Construciton
30
Water Heating
Opower West
Deployment
Opower MidWest
Deployment
Opower Southest
Deployment
Source: DSM Market Intelligence
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8
3
Once engaged, low income households
save and participate at high rates
Cumulative savings
(kWh/household)v
300
»
200
»
250
Low income customers delivered
almost identical savings across 5
Opower programs
They were equally likely to
consume more, less, and the same
as non-low-income customers
150
100
50
0
Western IOU 1
Western IOU 2
Low Income savings
Percent of households taking
Efficiency Actions
35%
»
20%
Of customers that received home
energy reports, a higher rate of
low income households
participated in each type of
efficiency action than non-lowincome (Navigant 2012)
Eastern IOU 1
Eastern IOU 2
Regular Income savings
30%
25%
15%
10%
5%
0%
Percent taking
Either Type of
Action
Percent taking
Equipment Actions
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Percen taking
Behavior Actions
4
It’s possible for successful low income
programs to be cost-effective
37%
Among ACEEE’s “exemplary” low income
energy efficiency programs, 37% are costeffective with a TRC > 1.0
54%
An analysis of low income programs filed by
86 utilities showed that 54% of those that filed
a cost-benefit test are cost-effective
Opower’s auto enroll programs have also been deployed
cost-effectively to low-income populations throughout the country
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Takeaways
Because every dollar counts, must
maximize the impact of low income
programs
Equitable programs required for far
reaching relief
Need targeted experiences that
engage low income populations
When low income customers save,
everyone wins
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Utility benefits of Opower low income
program
Reduce bad debt,
arrearages, and
administrative costs
Increased positive PR
Improved customer
satisfaction
Reach every low income
household
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Thank you!
Ricky Gratz
Manager
Market Development & Regulatory Affairs - East
O +1 571.483.3023
C +1 410.718.8173
[email protected]

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