The OurEnergyLibrary aggregates and indexes publicly available fact sheets, journal articles, reports, studies, and other publications on U.S. energy topics. It is updated every week to include the most recent energy resources from academia, government, industry, non-profits, think tanks, and trade associations. Suggest a resource by emailing us at info@ourenergypolicy.org.
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The Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC) conducts transmission planning studies through its Transmission Expansion Planning and Policy Committee (TEPPC). In recent years, WECC’s transmission planning process has been substantially expanded and enhanced with funding from the U. S. Department of Energy provided under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. This expanded effort, designated the Regional Transmission Expansion Planning (RTEP) project, entails the development of biennial 10- and 20-year transmission plans that serve to identify future transmission expansion needs and options for meeting those needs. The analysis conducted for each plan evaluates numerous stakeholder driven “study cases” (i.e., …
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The 56 State and Territory Energy Offices’ investments in energy efficiency and renewable energy projects have grown over three decades, not only through cost-shared support for technology demonstrations and commercialization, but also through a variety of financing programs and mechanisms. Over the past several years, the number and scale of these public-private financing programs have grown; the total estimated investment stands at $3 billion in 2013, with significant additions expected in the coming year.
The types of financing tools used by State Energy Offices have evolved from revolving loan funds to
sophisticated credit enhancement mechanisms and new approaches to bond …
Many state policymakers and utility regulators have established aggressive energy efficiency (EE) savings targets which will necessitate investing billions of dollars in existing buildings – and tax payer and utility bill payer funding is a small fraction of the total investment needed.1 Given this challenge, some EE program administrators are exploring ways to increase their reliance on financing with the aim of amplifying the impact of limited program monies.2 While financing is potentially an attractive tool for increasing program leverage and mitigating the rate impacts of utility customer-funded efficiency programs, administrators can face difficult choices between allocating funds to financing …
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Despite several decades of government policies to promote energy efficiency, estimates of the costs and benefits of such policies remain controversial. At the heart of the controversy is whether there is an “energy efficiency gap,” whereby consumers and firms fail to make seemingly positive net present value energy saving investments. High implicit discount rates, undervaluation of future fuel savings, and negative cost energy efficiency measures have all been discussed as evidence of the existence of a gap. We review explanations for an energy efficiency gap, including reasons why the size of the gap may be overstated, neoclassical explanations for a …
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This report presents the business case for investment in manufacturing sector energy efficiency. In order to provide practical and actionable information for policymakers, manufacturers, and related stakeholders, we focus on energy efficiency opportunities in Midwest pulp and paper mills. As the U.S. region with the largest industry share of overall economic activity, the Midwest is of central importance for industrial energy efficiency and forging a new low-carbon economy. Pulp and paper manufacturing is the third-largest energy-using manufacturing subsector in the U.S. Energy cost reduction, improved competitiveness, and reduced environmental compliance costs provide a compelling business case for Midwest pulp and …
View Full ResourceThe U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has issued a final rulemaking regarding new energy efficiency standards for the electrical consumption of residential microwave ovens when in standby (nonoperating) mode. This document, termed a technical support document (TSD), is a standalone report that describes the technical analyses performed and results obtained when examining the standby power consumed by microwave ovens and evaluating the effects of efficiency standards on consumers, manufacturers, and the nation as a whole. This TSD was prepared in support of DOE’s final rule for the standby power consumption of residential microwave ovens.…
View Full ResourceResearch shows climate change could impose a multi-trillion dollar burden on the global economy and contribute ten percent of overall risk within institutional investment portfolios. Institutional investors, who manage tens of trillions of dollars globally, are actively looking for ways to mitigate these climate-related risks. Energy efficiency offers one such opportunity for institutional investors to manage the risks of climate change while earning a competitive rate of return on their investment.…
View Full ResourceThis report compares energy efficiency policy in buildings in China, Germany, and the United States, providing the context for, and describing, policies in these three countries in order to lay the groundwork for future review of policy effectiveness.…
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