The new Honeywell UtilityPro thermostat will also reportedly be a key incentive for the program, which will help cut energy costs for participating customers and give the utility greater control of peak consumption on hot days when air conditioning use strains the power grid.
Baltimore Gas and Electric (BGE) and Honeywell expect to enroll an estimated 420,000 customers in the program, almost 50% of the utility’s residential customer base with central air conditioning.
BGE estimates its demand response infrastructure (DRI) program will reduce over 600MW of peak energy use by 2012, equivalent to the generation capacity of a small to mid-sized power plant. Honeywell expects to install the thermostats and switches in less than four years.
David Greenberg, principal electric supply analyst and project lead for BGE’s DRI program, said: BGE’s DRI program is part of our overall effort to transform and expand customer options for reducing energy costs and managing energy usage.
