Idaho Power's efficiency effort gets good writeup

Energy efficiency programs are generally associated with coastal states like Massachusetts and California, but now some heartland states with the country's lowest electricity rates are also focusing on using less. Idaho Power, a utility that once paid customers for using more electricity , has become a leader in efficiency programs by giving customers credits for switching power off during peak periods, Kate Galbraith reports for The New York Times.

The utility says that by paying customers to cut power at times of highest demand, it has reduced peak demand by as much as 5.6 percent, Galbraith reports. Idaho Power has a program that pays homeowners to cut their air conditioners briefly during peak periods, and one that promotes attic insulation. "It’s clearly iconic in terms of a utility that’s turned the corner," Tom Eckman, the manager of conservation resources with the Northwest Power and Conservation Council, a planning group created by Congress, told Galbraith. "They have gone from pretty much ground zero to a fairly aggressive program level."

The company isn't without its critics. Some have noted that despite heavy wind-energy potential, Idaho lags in development of renewable energy while neighboring states like Oregon, Washington and Wyoming amp up their wind development, Galbraith writes. Farmers, who make up a large segment of the utility's customers, say some of what they make up in electricity cost is lost in crops hurt by powering down. Ray Stark, senior vice president of the Boise Metro Chamber of Commerce, told Galbraith some economic-development opportunities may have been lost because of insufficient energy capacity. (Read more)