| (17) Energy efficiency service provider--A person or
other entity that installs energy efficiency measures or performs
other energy efficiency services under this section. An energy efficiency
service provider may be a retail electric provider or commercial customer,
provided that the commercial customer has a peak load equal to or
greater than 50 kW. An energy efficiency service provider may also
be a governmental entity or a non-profit organization, but may not
be an electric utility.
(18) Energy savings--A quantifiable reduction in a
customer's consumption of energy that is attributable to energy efficiency
measures, usually expressed in kWh or MWh.
(19) Estimated useful life (EUL)--The number of years
until 50% of installed measures are still operable and providing savings,
and is used interchangeably with the term "measure life". The EUL
determines the period of time over which the benefits of the energy
efficiency measure are expected to accrue.
(20) Evaluated savings--Savings estimates reported
by the EM&V contractor after the energy efficiency activities
and an impact evaluation have been completed. Differs from claimed
savings in that the EM&V contractor has conducted some of the
evaluation and/or verification activities. These values may rely on
claimed savings for factors such as installation rates and the Technical
Reference Manual for values such as per unit savings values and operating
hours. These savings estimates may also include adjustments to claimed
savings for data errors, per unit savings values, operating hours,
installation rates, savings persistence rates, or other considerations.
Can be indicated as first year, annual demand or energy savings, and/or
lifetime energy or demand savings values. Can be indicated as gross
savings and/or net savings values.
(21) Evaluation--The conduct of any of a wide range
of assessment studies and other activities aimed at determining the
effects of a program; or aimed at understanding or documenting program
performance, program or program-related markets and market operations,
program-induced changes in energy efficiency markets, levels of demand
or energy savings, or program cost-effectiveness. Market assessment,
monitoring, and evaluation, and measurement and verification (M&V)
are aspects of evaluation.
(22) Evaluation, measurement, and verification (EM&V)
contractor--One or more independent, third-party contractors selected
and retained by the commission to plan, conduct, and report on energy
efficiency evaluation activities, including verification.
(23) Free driver--Customers who do not directly participate
in an energy efficiency program, but who undertake energy efficiency
actions in response to program activity.
(24) Free rider--A program participant who would have
implemented the program measure or practice in the absence of the
program. Free riders can be total, in which the participant's activity
would have completely replicated the program measure; partial, in
which the participant's activity would have partially replicated the
program measure; or deferred, in which the participant's activity
would have completely replicated the program measure, but at a time
after the time the program measure was implemented.
(25) Growth in demand--The annual increase in demand
in the Texas portion of an electric utility's service area at time
of peak demand, as measured in accordance with this section.
(26) Gross savings--The change in energy consumption
and/or demand that results directly from program-related actions taken
by participants in an efficiency program, regardless of why they participated.
(27) Hard-to-reach customers--Residential customers
with an annual household income at or below 200% of the federal poverty
guidelines.
(28) Impact evaluation--An evaluation of the program-specific,
directly induced changes (e.g., energy and/or demand reduction) attributable
to an energy efficiency program.
(29) Incentive payment--Payment made by a utility to
an energy efficiency service provider, an end-use customer, or third-party
contractor to implement and/or attract customers to energy efficiency
programs, including standard offer, market transformation and self-delivered
programs.
(30) Industrial customer--A for-profit entity engaged
in an industrial process taking electric service at transmission voltage,
or a for-profit entity engaged in an industrial process taking electric
service at distribution voltage that qualifies for a tax exemption
under Tax Code §151.317 and has submitted an identification notice
under subsection (u) of this section.
(31) Inspection--Examination of a project to verify
that an energy efficiency measure has been installed, is capable of
performing its intended function, and is producing an energy savings
or demand reduction equivalent to the energy savings or demand reduction
reported towards meeting the energy efficiency goals of this section.
(32) Installation rate--The percentage of measures
that receive incentives under an energy efficiency program that are
actually installed in a defined period of time. The installation rate
is calculated by dividing the number of measures installed by the
number of measures that receive incentives under an efficiency program
in a defined period of time.
(33) International performance measurement and verification
protocol (IPMVP)--A guidance document issued by the Efficiency Valuation
Organization with a framework and definitions describing the M&V
approaches.
(34) Lifetime energy (demand) savings--The energy (demand)
savings over the lifetime of an installed measure(s), project(s),
or program(s). May include consideration of measure estimated useful
life, technical degradation, and other factors. Can be gross or net
savings.
(35) Load control--Activities that place the operation
of electricity-consuming equipment under the control or dispatch of
an energy efficiency service provider, an independent system operator,
or other transmission organization or that are controlled by the customer,
with the objective of producing energy or demand savings.
(36) Load management--Load control activities that
result in a reduction in peak demand, or a shifting of energy usage
from a peak to an off-peak period or from high-price periods to lower
price periods.
(37) Market transformation program--Strategic programs
intended to induce lasting structural or behavioral changes in the
market that result in increased adoption of energy efficient technologies,
services, and practices, as described in this section.
(38) Measurement and verification--A subset of program
impact evaluation that is associated with the documentation of energy
or demand savings at individual sites or projects using one or more
methods that can involve measurements, engineering calculations, statistical
analyses, and/or computer simulation modeling. M&V approaches
are defined in the IPMVP.
(39) Net savings--The total change in load that is
attributable to an energy efficiency program. This change in energy
and/or demand use shall include, implicitly or explicitly, consideration
of appropriate factors. These factors may include free ridership,
participant and non-participant spillover, induced market effects,
changes in the level of energy service, and/or other non-program causes
of changes in energy use and/or demand.
(40) Net-to-gross--A factor representing net program
savings divided by gross program savings that is applied to gross
program impacts to convert them into net program impacts. The factor
may be made up of a variety of factors that create differences between
gross and net savings, commonly considering the effects of free riders
and spillover.
(41) Non-participant spillover--Energy savings that
occur when a program non-participant installs energy efficiency measures
or applies energy savings practices as a result of a program's influence.
(42) Off-peak period--Period during which the demand
on an electric utility system is not at or near its maximum. For the
purpose of this section, the off-peak period includes all hours that
are not in the peak period.
(43) Participant spillover--The additional energy savings
that occur when a program participant independently installs incremental
energy efficiency measures or applies energy savings practices after
having participated in the efficiency program as a result of the program's
influence.
(44) Peak demand--Electrical demand at the times of
highest annual demand on the utility's system at the source. Peak
demand refers to Texas retail peak demand and, therefore, does not
include demand of retail customers in other states or wholesale customers.
(45) Peak demand reduction--Reduction in demand on
the utility's system at the times of the utility's summer peak period
or winter peak period.
Cont'd... |
