KNOXVILLE – Tennessee Valley Authority energy efficiency initiatives in 2012 saved enough energy to power more than 35,000 Tennessee Valley homes for a year, TVA’s top energy efficiency official said Thursday.
Bob Balzar, TVA vice president for Energy Efficiency and Demand Response, said the programs reduced electric power usage by 560 gigawatt-hours for the second straight year; exceeded TVA’s annual energy efficiency goals for the fifth year in a row, and raised total energy savings to more than 1,600 gigawatt-hours since 2007.
“We attribute the success of these programs to the strong support from local power companies, directly served industrial customers, consumers, businesses and industry,” Balzar said. “TVA thanks them all for their robust participation and looks forward to even greater achievements in the future.”
Energy efficiency reduces electricity use through actions, upgrades or retrofits while retaining the same output or performance. It cuts emissions and reduces the need to build new power plants to meet demand. Demand Response is a system that pays energy users to reduce consumption during periods when the cost and demand for electricity are highest, adding stability to the power grid.
Bob Balzar, TVA vice president of Energy Efficiency & Demand Response.
TVA energy efficiency and demand response initiatives added the ability to trim an additional 227 megawatts of peak demand in fiscal year 2012.
In total these programs have the ability to reduce more than 900 megawatts of peak demand (since FY07), the energy equivalent of a typical coal-fired power plant.
Also, the In-Home Energy Evaluation program completed 17,861 evaluations this year, bringing the total number to more than 46,000 evaluations since the program began in 2009. About 70 percent of those homeowners have made recommended home energy efficiency improvements.
These successful programs helped place TVA among regional leaders for energy efficiency and demand response in 2012, according to ratings by the U.S. Energy Information Administration Annual Electric Power Industry Report.
Other TVA energy efficiency highlights in 2012 include:
o In January, TVA and Clayton Homes, the region’s leader in manufactured home production, launched a new initiative to produce more Energy Star-certified manufactured homes in the region. To date, more than 600 Energy Star homes have been built and participate in this program saving each future homeowner nearly $1,000 per year in reduced energy bills.
o In February, TVA hosted its inaugural Energy Efficiency Forum in Nashville, drawing more than 400 national and regional industrial leaders to discuss energy efficiency in the Southeast. The Tennessee Valley Public Power Association co-sponsored this event with TVA.
o Five local power companies became participants in TVA’s Dispatchable Voltage Regulation Smart Grid pilot program, activating “virtual power plants” to help TVA meet peak power demand: Clinton Utilities Board; Chattanooga Electric Power Board; Fort Loudoun Electric Cooperative; Morristown Utilities Commission; Nashville Electric Service, and North East Mississippi Electric Power Association.
“The popularity of our energy efficiency and demand response programs continue to grow as their value becomes more evident — lower power bills for homes and businesses; reduced costs for power companies; fewer environmental impacts, and more efficient TVA power delivery,” Balzar said. “Energy efficiency has become an important contributor to the vitality and prosperity of the region and plays a key role in helping TVA achieve its vision for clean, low cost, reliable power for the future.”
Learn more about TVA’s EnergyRight Solutions energy efficiency program for homes, businesses and industries at www.EnergyRight.com.
The Tennessee Valley Authority, a corporation owned by the U.S. government, provides electricity for business customers and distribution utilities that serve 9 million people in parts of seven southeastern states at prices below the national average. TVA, which receives no taxpayer money and makes no profits, also provides flood control, navigation and land management for the Tennessee River system and assists utilities and state and local governments with economic development.
