Virginia Natural Gas to Promote Energy Efficiency Through New Conservation and Ratemaking Efficiency Plan
07 Luglio 2008 - 7:49PM
PR Newswire (US)
- First natural gas utility in state to file for new conservation
rate NORFOLK, Va., July 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Virginia
Natural Gas (VNG) announced today it has filed an application for a
new Conservation and Ratemaking Efficiency plan with the Virginia
State Corporation Commission (VSCC). The plan calls for new energy
conservation programs, coupled with an alternative rate mechanism,
designed to assist customers in lowering their energy bills. As
part of the plan, VNG will devote $7.5 million over three years to
these new conservation initiatives with a projected customer
savings of $39.5 million over 10 years. The Virginia General
Assembly recently passed the Natural Gas Conservation and
Ratemaking Efficiency Act, which is intended to encourage natural
gas utilities to file conservation programs and an alternative rate
design in light of increasing energy costs, and to reward utilities
that assist customers in reducing energy consumption and energy
bills. Proposed plans must be approved by the VSCC. "We are pleased
to be the first natural gas utility in Virginia to propose a
Conservation and Rate Making Efficiency plan," said Jodi Gidley,
president, Virginia Natural Gas. "Our plan will provide consumer
outreach, education and a series of new conservation programs to
assist customers in using energy more wisely, lowering their energy
costs and reducing environmental impacts." Today, 77 percent of the
typical residential customer's bill is the cost of the natural gas
the utility purchases and delivers to the customer with no mark-up
or profit. The remaining 23 percent is the utility base charge that
allows the utility to recover the costs they incur to maintain safe
and reliable service. By taking advantage of the new conservation
programs VNG is proposing, customers can reduce the commodity side
of their bills. Over the long-term this may lower overall natural
gas prices by decreasing demand. The plan separates distribution
revenue from gas consumption through the use of a conservation
rider, allowing the utility to recover the cost of providing
reliable service based on normal customer usage. "The ever
increasing cost of energy and projections of continued high prices
and volatility makes it increasingly important to focus on
effective long-term efficiency and conservation measures," said
Gidley. "Now is the perfect time to provide consumers with the
tools they need to decrease their energy usage and better manage
their costs and to remove the disincentive for utilities to
encourage conservation." The plan creates several new initiatives
aimed at helping consumers reduce their natural gas consumption and
use energy more efficiently. These new programs include: --
Community outreach and customer education program -- This program
will raise awareness of the importance of energy conservation among
VNG's customers, and also inform customers of the specific programs
available to help them conserve natural gas and lower their energy
bills. -- High efficiency home heating program -- This program will
provide incentives designed to encourage customers, when they
choose their furnace, to do so with a natural gas furnace which
operates at 90 percent or better efficiency. This particular
program has the potential to have the greatest effect on reducing
natural gas consumption for residential customers. -- High
efficiency water heater programs -- These programs, one for natural
gas tank water heaters and one for natural gas tankless heaters,
will consist of incentives designed to encourage customers to move
towards highly efficient natural gas water heaters. Incentives
would encourage customers to choose tanked units with either an
energy factor of 0.62 or greater or a tankless water heater with an
energy factor of 0.82. A water heater is typically the second
largest user of natural gas in most homes. -- Low-income home
weatherization program -- This program will address the needs of
low-income residential customers, and is designed to improve energy
affordability. This will be accomplished through the direct
installation of cost-effective energy efficiency measures in the
home (determined on a home-specific basis) which may include:
efficient lighting products; hot water and water heating
conservation measures (water heater insulation, water heater pipe
insulation and energy-saving showerheads and aerators); replacement
of inefficient refrigerators; thermostats; insulation upgrades
(attic, wall, etc.); blower-door guided air sealing; duct sealing
and repair; heating/cooling equipment maintenance and other
dwelling-specific measures, personalized customer energy education
and counseling. In addition to weatherization measures, equipment
and appliance repair or aid with appliance replacement will be part
of the program. Participants are asked to partner with the program
to develop and carry out a household energy savings Action Plan.
All efficiency measures and energy education services are provided
free of charge. Customers with an income at or below 175 percent of
the federal poverty guidelines would be eligible. -- Seasonal
check-up program -- Under this program, VNG proposes a partially
subsidized home check-up to help customers control their current
energy costs. A customer would have a 21 point check-up and
inspection of their heating and cooling system, which would include
a filter examination and recommended energy saving measures like
the installation of a modern set-back thermostat, weather stripping
or equipment repair or replacement. VNG would provide a $25
incentive payment to customers to apply to the cost of the seasonal
check-up or the purchase of a programmable thermostat. Dirty
filters, inefficiently operating equipment and overuse of energy
when customers are not home often lead to as much as a 10 percent
increase in energy consumption. -- ENERGY STAR(R) residential new
construction program -- This program is proposed as a pilot capped
at 100 customers, and is designed to encourage the installation of
highly energy efficient ENERGY STAR(R) rated natural gas equipment
in residential new construction rather than the standard less
costly and less efficient equipment. If approved by the VSCC, the
new programs could be launched as early as January 2009. About
Virginia Natural Gas Virginia Natural Gas, a wholly owned
subsidiary of AGL Resources (NYSE: ATG), provides retail natural
gas sales and distribution services to more than 270,000 customers
in southeast Virginia. For more information, visit
http://www.virginianaturalgas.com/ . About AGL Resources AGL
Resources (NYSE:ATG), an Atlanta-based energy services company,
serves more than 2.3 million customers in six states. The company
also owns Houston-based Sequent Energy Management, an asset manager
serving natural gas wholesale customers throughout North America.
As a 70 percent owner in the SouthStar partnership, AGL Resources
markets natural gas to consumers in Georgia under the Georgia
Natural Gas brand. The company also owns and operates Jefferson
Island Storage & Hub, a high-deliverability natural gas storage
facility near the Henry Hub in Louisiana. For more information,
visit http://www.aglresources.com/ . DATASOURCE: AGL Resources Inc.
CONTACT: Keith Poston, Virginia Natural Gas -- AGL Resources,
+1-404-584-4189, , 24-Hour Media Line: 1-866-757-6646 Web site:
http://www.virginianaturalgas.com/ http://www.aglresources.com/
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