Wednesday, April 19, 2023
10:00am – 12:00pm
Pre-Forum Workshop (for Utility and Government Attendees Only)
Paul Reid, Azusa Light & Water and Kapil Kulkarni, California Public Utilities Commission
Candid roundtable discussion on current issues, including these highest-ranked responses to a recent survey of registrants:
- Inflation Reduction Act and how this can impact utility programs and participation
- Electrification/Decarbonization – How utilities promote it and the impacts on customers
- Residential demand response programs
12:00pm – 1:00pm
Lunch Buffet
12:45pm – 1:00pm
First-timer Orientation and Welcome
1:00pm – 1:15pm
Welcoming Remarks
Mary Medeiros McEnroe, Silicon Valley Power
1:15pm – 2:15pm
Opening Keynote: From the Ground Up : Regenerative Farming and a Sustainable business model at Tablas Creek Vineyard
Jordan Lonborg, Tablas Creek Vineyard
Tablas Creek Vineyard became the first Regenerative Organic Certifiedtm winery in the world in 2019. ROC is a global certification that spans all forms of agriculture, textiles, and personal care products. To date, over 237k acres have been certified across four continents with that number growing rapidly each year. They farm this way because the company feels that it is the “right thing” to do for the land, animals, and the people that work there. It sends a powerful message to the their industry, consumers, and the local community that Tablas Creek is not willing to accept anything less than the very highest standards for the way they farm and conduct business. They also track their GHG impact, have developed initiatives for carbon capture, biodiversity, reducing packaging and waste, and communicate those initiatives via their social media platforms to share their story. Don’t these environmental values align with the utility industries values as well? Jordan will discuss these and other sustainability practices as a leading example of how utilities can be “fast followers” in the shared practices that their customers engage in and deploy them in their customer messaging and business activities.
2:15pm – 2:45pm
Networking Break and Energy Quiz
Quiz Emcee: Mark Gosvener, Efficiency Services Group
2:45pm – 4:10pm
Strategic/Policy View Panel
Mark Rehley, NEEA and Mary Medeiros McEnroe, Silicon Valley Power
Building Performance Standards (BPS) are outcome-based policies aimed at improving the energy performance of existing buildings. This session will share information about BPS, their interaction with energy codes, where they are being adopted, how they are evolving, and what we have learned from early adoption and implementation.
- Overview of BPS and building energy codes: what they are, how they relate to building energy performance, and ongoing research and supporting programs in this space
Andrea Mengual, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
- BPS policies around the country. Where have they been implemented? How are the BPS policies changing and where will this show up next?
Bryce Seymour, New Building Institute
- BPS in California, what has been done, what have we learned, and what are California’s plans for the future
Bach Tsan, California Energy Commission
4:10pm – 4:15pm
Quick Break
4:15pm – 5:15pm
Meet the Exhibitors
5:15pm
Adjourn
5:15pm – 6:15pm
Reception
6:30pm
Dinner
8:00pm
Networking Event
Unwind at a casual gathering with hot beverages to reflect on the day's discussion and look ahead to tomorrow.
Thursday, April 20, 2023
7:30am – 8:30am
Breakfast Buffet
8:30am – 9:45am
Unintended Risks Associated with Climate Policies and How They Impact Utility Programs
Scott Mayfield, Evergreen Consulting Group and Mary Medeiros McEnroe, Silicon Valley Power
- Lessons Learned from New Technologies and Customer Expectations
Eric Olson, NEEA
- Getting Power to Where it is Needed. What’s the Problem?
Dan Kay, Wahkiakum PUD
- Demand-Side Electrification Constraints and Emerging Technology Solutions
Wyatt Merrill, U.S. Department of Energy
- The State of Battery Recycling
Todd Coy, KBI
9:45am – 10:15am
Networking Break with Energy Quiz
Quiz Emcee: Mark Gosvener, Efficiency Services Group
10:15am – 11:00am
Utility Program Stand-up Challenge – Round 1
Join us for the craziest round of concurrent sessions ever! Imagine speed dating meets the lightning round of a TV game show! Visit up to 4 storyboards detailing utility-sponsored energy programs or research. Each storyboard presenter has up to 5 minutes (plus up to 7 minutes for Q&A) to share with you the program’s goals, successes and lessons learned. A bell rings, you choose another storyboard, and the 12-minute clock starts again.
Cheri Davis, SMUD and Kamryn Hutson, Redding Electric Utility
Using The Pool to Help Families Keep Kool – A Fun Twist on Demand Response
Amber Rockwell, City of Banning
City of Banning Electric Utility has been focusing on ways to bring our community together, encourage energy efficiency, and shed peak load. During the summer of 2022, BEU partnered with our local Parks and Recreation Department to sponsor free-swim sessions, and Friday-night movies in the pool. Our poster will discuss the theory behind these events, community feedback, lessons learned, and future plans for aquatic-related DR programs at our beautiful Repplier Park Aquatic Center.
Lessons and Insights from the PG&E Induction Cooktop Loaner Program
Richard Young, Food Service Technology Center
PG&E launched an Induction Cooktop Loaner Program (ICLP) for both residential and commercial customers early in 2022. This ICLP program has been very successful, and many lessons were learned during the program’s first year of operation. These logistical and operational lessons, as well as the insights from detailed customer pre- and post-surveys, were published in an Emerging Technologies report at the end of the first year. This poster session will share these lessons and insights and preview how the ICLP program might evolve over the coming years.
Pedaling into Electrification: A Community-Based Approach to Redding’s E-Bike Program
Kamryn Hutson and Vince Karlson, City of Redding Electric Utility
City of Redding’s interest in e-bikes has increased over the last several years. In response, Redding Electric Utility (REU) developed an income-qualified e-bike program to provide a clean mobility option to our most vulnerable community members. Additionally, REU wanted to focus on reducing up-front costs and promoting health & safety measures for riders. REU partnered with a local agency to provide educational courses as a requirement to receive a point-of-purchase voucher for an e-bike, helmet, and lock. This poster will discuss the program’s evolution, from the design & implementation process to the budgetary restrictions for implementing a $25k program, and the lessons learned from partnering with local agencies and businesses.
Decarbonization Successes and Lessons Learned from SMUD’s Multifamily Program
Leah Pertl, SMUD and Sebastian Cohn, Association for Energy Affordability
Decarbonizing the existing building stock is critical to meeting California's ambitious greenhouse gas reduction targets, but doing so for multifamily buildings presents some unique challenges. In 2021, SMUD launched the Multifamily Program to help existing multifamily properties convert natural gas equipment to high performance electric equipment, install electric vehicle charging stations, and complete energy efficiency upgrades. The program successfully completed comprehensive upgrades through 2022 for 1000+ apartments in the region and has substantially increased program participation through 2023 with an additional 900+ apartments in the project pipeline. The program has a number of unique features, including application and project management support, site specific technical assistance, utility support for electrical capacity and infrastructure assessments, and enhanced incentives for qualifying affordable properties. This poster will present the program design elements, case studies of recently completed multifamily retrofit projects, and lessons learned to date.
Smart Panels are a Smart Choice for the Utility and the Customer
Mary Medeiros McEnroe, Silicon Valley Power
Electrification efforts can lead to service upgrades, which can be costly to the customer and challenging for the utility. This drove Silicon Valley Power to transform its Electric Panel Upgrade Rebate program into a Smart Panel Rebate program. Traditional electric panels are sized assuming that all appliances may be drawing power at the same time, but smart panels allow customers to control the load to avoid electric service upgrades. The new program helps to prepare for building and transportation electrification efforts in support of greenhouse gas reduction goals without overbuilding electric service to residential customers. The program was also designed with an equity component to ensure funds are provided to customers who need the most financial assistance. This poster will share Silicon Valley Power’s reasons for making the transition, considerations for program design, and current participation requirements.
11:00am - 12: 00pm
Midpoint Keynote
12:00pm – 1:00pm
Lunch Buffet
1:00pm – 2:00pm
Utility Program Stand-up Challenge – Round 2
Join us for the craziest round of concurrent sessions ever! Imagine speed dating meets the lightning round of a TV game show! Visit up to 4 storyboards detailing utility-sponsored energy programs or research. Each storyboard presenter has up to 5 minutes (plus up to 7 minutes for Q&A) to share with you the program’s goals, successes and lessons learned. A bell rings, you choose another storyboard, and the 12-minute clock starts again.
Cheri Davis, SMUD and Kamryn Hutson, Redding Electric Utility
Prosperity Roseville – Supporting Your Small to Medium Businesses
Nicole Oase, Roseville Electric Utility
Prosper Roseville aligns Roseville Electric Utility’s mission as a utility in helping to improve the quality of life for our community and customers with a custom approach that supports our small to medium businesses. This custom approach also allows us to be adaptable to the different challenges that are impacting our business customers today and in the future. It aims to support our small to medium businesses with a suite of offerings that are people-focused and proactive, build trust, empower customers to make quality decisions, enhance inclusive collaboration, promote business retention and create building and transportation electrification opportunities. With many industries and utilities struggling to strategically communicate with their small to medium businesses, this poster aims to show why going back to the basics of account management is so important.
We're in This Together - DRET Collaborative Projects Focused on Residential Energy Storage
Mark Martinez, Southern California Edison and Julie Hayes, JHC LLC
The Demand Response Emerging Technologies (DRET) collaborative consists of three utility research programs in California that are investing more than $25 million over five years to accelerate innovative demand response technologies to meet California’s electric reliability and climate goals. The programs in the DRET collaborative are funded by the state’s three largest investor-owned utilities – Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), Southern California Edison (SCE), and San Diego Gas & Electric Company (SDG&E).This poster will highlight the research methodology, testing approaches, and results from three DRET projects focused on residential battery storage:
- SCE’s Mosaic Gardens – how battery energy storage systems plus two solar arrays on a low income, multifamily property resulted in zero net energy;
- SCE’s Residential Energy Storage pilot - how single-family homes with solar and storage can achieve flexible pricing benefits; and
- PG&E’s Residential Battery as Virtual Power Plant – how aggregated residential energy storage systems supported the utility’s developing strategy for managing grid emergencies.
Overcoming the (Understandable) Financial Barrier of Residential Fuel-Switching: On-Bill Financing
Felicia Smith, Sonoma Clean Power
Fuel-switching from natural gas to high-efficiency electric appliances can be costly in homes. Sonoma Clean Power developed a 0% financing on-bill financing option to help residential customers overcome those financial barriers to install heat pump HVAC, heat pump water heaters, and induction cooking. Learn about how it works, how we partnered with contractors, and some of the areas identified for improvement.
A New Tool for Disaster-Resistant Home Construction
Katherine Cort, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Wildfires, floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, extreme heat – today’s builders and remodelers have more to worry about than labor shortages and lumber prices. Once a home is built, will it stand up to the elements? To help the building industry construct and renovate more resilient homes, the U.S. Department of Energy has drawn upon the expertise of industry experts, disaster-resistance agencies, and the national labs to create a user-friendly resource for residential construction stakeholders. This new tool is the most recent addition to DOE’s Building America Solution Center. Averaging over 60,000 visits a month, the Solution Center is an online resource giving builders and contractors how-to guidance for making homes more energy efficient, durable, comfortable, healthy, and now disaster-resistant. Visit this poster to learn more about the Solution Center’s free offerings, including easy-to-search libraries of guides, photos, drawings, videos, CAD files, case studies, code notes, and references that can support training materials and program guidance.
2:00pm – 3:30pm
Technology View
Katie Cort, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Mark Martinez, Southern California Edison
3:30pm – 4:00pm
Networking Break and Energy Quiz
Quiz Emcee: Mark Gosvener, Efficiency Services Group
4:00pm – 5:15pm
Customer View
Amber Rockwell, City of Banning Electric Utility and Mary Medeiros McEnroe, Silicon Valley Power
5:15pm – 6:15pm
Reception
6:30pm
Dinner
8:00pm
Wine Tasting & Networking
Friday, April 21, 2023
7:30am – 8:30am
Breakfast Buffet
8:30am – 10:00am
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Utility Programs
Mary Medeiros McEnroe, Silicon Valley Power and Ron Horstman, Western Area Power Administration
- Principles of Equitable & Inclusive Energy Programs
Justine Blanchet, Consultant
- Equitable Carsharing
Gloria Huerta, MioCar
- Embracing DEI – Beyond Program Participation
John Phelan, Fort Collins Utilities
10:00am – 10:30am
Networking Break with Energy Quiz
Quiz Emcee: Mark Gosvener, Efficiency Services Group
10:30am – 12:00pm
Utility Programs Snapshot
Adrianne Rogers, City of Colton Electric Utility and Dan Kay, Wahkiakum PUD
- Palo Alto’s Business Electrification Program
Shelby Sinkler, City of Palo Alto Utilities
12:00pm
Adjourn
12:00pm – 1:00pm
Lunch