FirstEnergy’s Pennsylvania utilities introduce demand response program for business customers

FirstEnergy Corp.’s Pennsylvania utilities announced a new demand response program this week that offers financial incentives to commercial and industrial customers that cut their energy usage when requested during peak hours.

The utilities, Met-Ed, Penn Power and West Penn Power, will run the program from the summer months of June to September in 2017 through 2020.

“This demand response program is a great opportunity for businesses to improve their bottom line by managing their electricity use,” John Dargie, vice president of Energy Efficiency at FirstEnergy, said. “In addition to saving energy, businesses that participate can reduce the demand on the electric system and help prevent potential increases in electricity prices when demand is high.”

Load reducing measures include temporarily reducing or shutting down industrial processes, turning off lights in groups or sequences, shutting down large motors and compressors, reducing the use of HVAC systems and starting back-up generation.

CPower and EnerNOC, approved Demand Response Program Service Providers selected by FirstEnergy’s Pennsylvania utilities, will administer the program.

Pennsylvania Act 129, signed into law in 2008, set demand reduction and savings goals for electric utilities in the state. For Phase III of FirstEnergy’s Energy Efficiency and Conservation plan, which runs through May 2021, the company set a goal of 566,168 incremental annual megawatt-hours of energy savings.