16th Annual AESP-NEEC Conference
The Association of Energy Services Professionals (AESP) and the Northeast Energy Efficiency Council (NEEC) will hold their sixteenth annual joint conference on November 7, 2016 in Framingham, MA.
Conference Agenda
Conference Registration Website
8:30 AM
Opening Remarks
Bill Norton
President, AESP Northeast Chapter
President and Chief Operating Officer, Opinion Dynamics
Paul Gromer
Executive Director, Northeast Energy Efficiency Council
CEO, Peregrine Energy Group
9:00 – 10:30 AM
Infrastructure Modernization Affects Us All
Many Northeast states are in the process of developing, submitting and implementing plans for updating aging infrastructure. Reforming the Energy Vision (REV), System Integration Rhode Island (SIRI) and grid modernization in Massachusetts are all going to significantly change the way we communicate with customers about energy use, make capital investment decisions, and plan for peak load. These plans will create both significant challenges and new opportunities for energy efficiency. How do these dockets impact each state’s current portfolio of energy efficiency and demand response programs? Is there a way to incorporate new communicating technologies, distributed generation, energy storage and demand reduction initiatives?
This panel will discuss these questions, providing unique insight from four important and influential perspectives. How do utilities and program administrators foresee customer engagement changing? What are the implications for implementers and technology leaders who have focused on energy efficiency products and services? Will these plans, and other related legislation, change some of the high level objectives of energy efficiency in each state?
Moderator: Gene Rodrigues, ICF International
Richard Hepp, Director of MicroGrids Eastern North America, Schneider Electric
Ross Kiddie, VP of Energy & Utilities Sector, ICF International
Carlos Nouel, Vice President, New Energy Solutions, National Grid
Arah Schuur, Director of Energy Efficiency, MA Department of Energy Resources
10:30 AM – 11:00 AM
Networking Break
11:00 AM – 12:15 AM
I Can See Clearly Now: Making the Value of Energy Efficiency More Visible in Communities and Buildings
Energy efficiency in buildings may be old news for program administrators in New England, but it is still almost invisible to an average homebuyer or community member. As the industry looks to trends that include blending environmental with energy goals in states and communities, and letting market forces drive efficiency, a la NY Reforming the Energy Vision, what are the strategies that can help ease the way forward? How do we signal the value of energy efficiency? Benchmarking and communicating to audiences that can take action with good information and other forward-looking strategies that engage markets and communities are taking place through out New England. This panel will discuss examples of these strategies and consider how they may enhance or assist communities realize the value of energy efficiency.
Moderator: Elizabeth Titus, Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships (NEEP)
Diana McCarthy-Bercury, Program Administrator, Eversource
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Matthew Ray, Senior Strategic Business Analyst, National Grid
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Laura Rodormer, Senior Strategic Business Analyst, National Grid
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Charlie Taylor, Buildings Project Manager, Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships (NEEP)
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12:15 AM – 1:15 PM – Lunch
1:15 PM – 2:30 PM
Overcoming Barriers to Energy Efficiency With Innovated Financing Approaches
With the growing need for energy efficiency to meet statutory requirements for energy savings and climate change mitigation, it is becoming more important to acquire deep savings in all market sectors in the Northeast. Structural market barriers limit existing energy efficiency programs to achieving only a portion of possible energy savings. A complementary method to traditional incentive-based programs is efficiency-focused financing, frequently designed to overcome one key barrier to participation and achievement of savings – upfront cost to the potential participant. However, to provide effective financing, addressing just upfront cost is not necessarily sufficient to motivate action.
This session will focus on the use of innovative approaches and engagement tools to address a variety of challenges in the Northeast energy efficiency industry through combining financing with other key strategies. Presenters will address their innovative approaches and non-traditional efforts to provide financing to various entities, and the panel will discuss and consider the unique challenges and drivers specific to energy efficiency financing, lessons learned and best practices to apply elsewhere, and the role of financing moving forward in achieving necessary savings.
Topics for discussion include:
- Best practices in offering energy efficiency financing
- Evaluability of financing efforts and challenges in evaluability
- Barriers to participation and how to overcome them
- Administrative and market realities that affect offering financing, including “hurdles to clear” when offering financing
Moderator: Chris Kramer, Energy Futures Group
Andrea Colnes, Executive Director, Energy Action Network
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John D’Agostino, Senior Manager – Residential Programs, Connecticut Green Bank
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Maria Fields, Managing Director and Investor Relations, Joule Assets
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2:30 PM – 2:45 PM
Networking Break
2:45 PM – 4:00 PM
Life After Lighting
Residential lighting programs are the cornerstone of which Program Administrators build their portfolios of energy efficiency programs. From CFLs to LEDs, from point-of-sale rebates to upstream retail buy-downs, residential lighting programs, have long accounted for a substantial share of total energy savings claimed by utility programs and driven portfolio level of effectiveness. Times appear to be changing, and quickly at that. Baseline efficiency for lighting is up, equipment standards require more efficient products, evaluated free-ridership is high in most jurisdictions, new technologies are emerging and costs are down. While there remains some debate regarding how much longer residential lighting can serve as the foundation of utility savings, most agree it’s time to consider what’s next. What will fill the void? What new program designs and market strategies exist? What new technologies show promise? This panel will discuss these issues and more as we look to the future for the next source of cost effective savings.
Moderator: Tami Buhr, Opinion Dynamics
Emily Levin, Manager, Consulting – Program Strategies, Vermont Energy Investment Corporation
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Claire Miziolek, Market Strategies Program Manager, Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships (NEEP)
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Matt Nelson, Director of Electric Power Division, MA Department of Public Utilities
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Chris Plecs, Director, Regulatory Planning, Support and Evaluation, Eversource
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4:00 PM – Wrap-up and Adjourn
Reception
Conference attendees are invited to gather for beverages, light refreshments, and conversation.