GOVERNOR’S ENERGY ADVISORY COUNCIL
MEETING MINUTES OF SEPTEMBER 28, 2006
PRESENT: Anderson, Jan DNREC/Delaware Energy Office
Burton, Sandra DNREC/DEO/Energy An$wers Program
Buttner, Sarah DOS, Public Advocate
Cherry, Phil DNREC/Office of the Secretary
Furman, Bob Office of Management and Budget
Hodas, David R., Chair Widener University School of Law
McRae, Arnetta Public Service Commission
Morgan, Richard District of Columbia Public Svc. Comm.
Nielson, Mark Delaware Electric Cooperative
Ross, Seth Delaware Nature Society
Smisson, Jr., Charlie T. DNREC/Delaware Energy Office
Smith, Gary Delaware Economic Development Office
Stockbridge, Gary Delmarva Power
Thompson, Steve Chesapeake Utilities Corporation
Wagner, Heidi Delaware Public Service Commission
Walling, Lee Ann Governor’s Office
I. CALL TO ORDER AND WELCOME - Chair David R. Hodas:
The Governor’s Energy Advisory Council Meeting was brought to order at 9:35 a.m. by Chair David R. Hodas on September 28, 2006, in the Farmington Conference Room of the DELDOT Administration Building on U.S. Route 113 in Dover, Delaware. Chair Hodas welcomed everyone, and handouts were made available for everyone including copies of the June 22, 2006 G.E.A.C. Meeting Minutes.
II. OPENING COMMENTS - Chair David R. Hodas:
The minutes of the June 22, 2006 meeting were approved, accepted, and adopted by the Council with a comment by the Chair that they were very well put together. Chair Hodas said he hoped everyone had a good summer. He introduced Richard (Rick) Morgan, Commissioner, District of Columbia Public Service Commission who will give a Power Point presentation at today’s meeting. Chair Hodas stated that Arnetta McRae was very helpful in arranging Rick’s visit today. Arnetta mentioned that Rick Morgan is the Commissioner of the District of Columbia Public Service Commission, and he also serves as a member of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners on a committee entitled Energy Resources of the Environment. In addition, he chairs the Mid-Atlantic Demand Response Initiative. Also, Heidi Wagner of the Delaware Public Service Commission introduced herself, and stated that she attended today’s meeting to hear Mr. Morgan’s presentation.
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III. MID-ATLANTIC DEMAND RESPONSE INITIATIVE (MADRI) – Energy Conservation Initiatives – Richard Morgan, Commissioner, District of Columbia Public Service Commission:
Before the start of the presentation, Mr. Morgan stated some of his background, i.e., a 12-year EPA employee. He said he has also worked for the D.C. Public Service Commission for over 20 years. He said MADRI has no office, no staff, and no budget. It is really just a group of people that are working together to try to solve problems. The MADRI website is: www.energetics.com/madri.
Mr. Morgan started out by explaining “What is Demand Response”? He stated that basically it is a process where customers change their demand for electricity in response to price or some kind of incentive or some kind of emergency appeal. Unlike with other commodities, this happens very little in electricity markets. Somehow we become immune to the laws of supply and demand. The supply may go up and down but the demand is almost always assumed to be fixed. We pay dearly for having a fixed demand response that is not responsive to outside influences. If we are going to have a competitive electricity market, it is essential to have demand response as a component. A supply curve without a demand curve is like only one hand clapping. It means you have basically a vertical demand curve which winds up leaving consumers defenseless when prices spike. Implementation of demand response is not easy. It poses a lot of challenges to the traditional form of utility regulations over issues of how energy is priced, how costs are recovered, and how resources are procured.
Some of the other topics Mr. Morgan explained in detail in his Power Point Presentation were:
► Demand Response: The Other Side of the Market
► A Few Thoughts on Demand Response
► Potential Benefits of Demand Response
► Barriers to Demand Response
► Demand Response Examples and Success Stories
► Advanced Metering
► Demand Response and Energy Efficiency Are Not Mutually Exclusive
► Challenges for Demand Response Implementing
► Advanced Metering Penetraton in Northeast and Mid-Atlantic States
► FERC Staff Recommendations – RE: Demand Response
► SmartPower Pilot
► Mid-Atlantic Distributive Resources Initiative (MADRI)
► MADRI Objectives
► Five MADRI Initiatives
► MADRI’s AMI Toolbox
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► MADRI Model Small Generator Interconnection Procedures
► Small Load Decreases Can Have a Large Price Impact
► Multi-State/PJM Analysis of Market Price Benefits of Demand Response
► Regulatory Policies to Facilitate Distributed Energy Resources
► Seizing Opportunities for Demand Response
► RX for State PUCs in Enabling Demand Response
Mr. Morgan also distributed the following handouts: Demand Response Resources, SmartPowerDC, MADRI Policy Statement on Distributed Energy Resources (June 2006), FERC Staff Report on Demand Response and Advanced Metering, and Mid-Atlantic Distributive Resources Initiative.
Mr. Morgan gave his “prescription” for what state PUCs can do to enable Demand Response. He said first of all, explore advanced metering infrastructure and DR potential; examine all the technology including all those collateral benefits because that is what will help all those dollars to add up and put you over the top; and establish DR goals.
At the conclusion of the presentation, questions were taken by Mr. Morgan. Lee Ann Walling, of the Governor’s Office, stated that she would like to hear something from Delmarva Power. Gary Stockbridge stated that Rick Morgan is doing a great job working with Delmarva. Gary said Rick knows Delmarva’s position. Over the past year, we have met with the Governor, all the Legislators, the Public Service Commission, and told them we are very interested in this technology. We are also interested in the pilots.
Chair Hodas asked: Does Demand Response look to more efficient motors or transformers? – or is it more toward the efficiency side? Mr. Morgan said yes, that is the efficiency side. Chair Hodas asked if the rate issues are the same for Demand Response as for the broader efficiency efforts in terms of decoupling? Mr. Morgan said in terms of decoupling and the dis-incentive, the difference is more in terms of quantity. Energy efficiency around the clock is going to cause a bigger hit on the utilities’ bottom line than Demand Response which has a more limited impact.
Chair Hodas thanked Rick Morgan for his excellent presentation.
IV. DELAWARE ENERGY AN$WERS PROGRAM – Sandra Burton, DNREC:
Chair Hodas introduced Sandra Burton, of DNREC, who has been working on the Delaware Energy An$wers Program - The Delaware Energy Office Has An$wers – But ONLY YOU Have The POWER To Save. She thanked the Council for giving her time to talk about this new program. She stated that she has been fortunate to have the
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opportunity to put together probably the most exciting thing that has occurred in energy in the State of Delaware for a long time.
DELAWARE ENERGY AN$WERS PROGRAM:
BACKGROUND:
Sandra said this program is part of Senate Bill 281 that Governor Minner signed on May 2, 2006 establishing and appropriating $8 Million to DNREC for a new Energy Efficiency Program. She said that the program indicated that the money should be divided equally between residential and commercial customers. She said we were also encouraged to look into a compact fluorescent light bulb give-away campaign so that we would be able to reach all Delawareans and give everyone the opportunity to save.
FOUR TARGETED SEGMENTS:
The Delaware Energy An$wers Program has four target segments tailored to different needs: Flip The Switch Delaware is the CFL program in cooperation with all of our state and county libraries. The Delaware Energy An$wers for Business has Prescribed, Customized, and Just An$wers parts to it. The other two programs are The Delaware Energy An$wers for Home Appliances and Delaware Energy An$wers for Home Performance.
ELIGIBILITY:
Sandra stated that we had to really look at how and who we were going to reach with this. It is available to all residential and commercial customers engaged in business in Delaware and located in Delaware. Government facilities, state, local, municipal, and not-for-profits as well as new construction ARE NOT ELIGIBLE at this time.
Sandra proceeded with her Power Point presentation to cover and explain the following remaining topics. Handouts were distributed so everyone could follow along.
■ Flip the Switch, Delaware…and Save
■ Library Benefits
■ Energy An$wers for Business
■ Energy An$wers for Business - Just An$wers
■ Energy An$wers for Business – Prescribed An$wers
■ Energy An$wers for Business – Custom An$wers
■ Budget
■ Energy An$wers for Home Appliances
■ Energy An$wers for Home Performance
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■ Advertising Campaign
■ Books
■ Redemption Value
■ Self Mailer
■ Tracking and Reporting
■ Schedule
At the conclusion of Sandra’s presentation, Chair Hodas stated that the “plan” was pretty exciting.
Phil Cherry stated that Sandra has done an outstanding job in putting this program together. He said it is obvious from what has been presented here that this has been a lot of work in a short period of time; and it is largely due to her efforts and her talents.
Lee Ann Walling stated that the “light bulb campaign” has a double purpose…it also gets people to go to their library – and everybody can use light bulbs.
Sandra also thanked Gary Stockbridge and Delmarva Power for their support for the program.
Charlie Smisson asked that the Governor’s Energy Advisory Council try to figure out ways to sustain this program.
V. MISCELLANEOUS COMMENTS:
Chair Hodas stated that at next month’s meeting, we will have someone from the University of Delaware talk about a major off-shore wind study project in Delaware.
Charlie mentioned that some time in the future we should try to get Delmarva Power to make a presentation on the RFP/IRP Process.
Also, Chair Hodas mentioned that at a later date the Council will need to start discussing an outline of the new Energy Plan Study. He stated that there is funding for this study courtesy of DNREC.
VI. OLD BUSINESS: There was no old business discussed.
VII. NEW BUSINESS – REFER TO THE SEPTEMBER 28, 2006 AGENDA:
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VIII. NEXT MEETING:
The next meeting will be held as follows:
October 26, 2006 – 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
Farmington Conference Room – DELDOT Administration Building
U.S. Route 113, Dover, Delaware
PLEASE NOTE: No meeting will be held in November due to the Thanksgiving Holiday falling on the fourth Thursday of the month. The December meeting will be held on Thursday, December 7, 2006 instead of later in the month.
IX. ADJOURNMENT: Today’s meeting was adjourned at 11:30 a.m.
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Jan Anderson, DEO, Recorder/Transcriber
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