20130124-奥纬咨询-Shooting_in_the_Dark_8页_268kb

Energy Efficiency Program Inefficiency Analysis

U.S. utilities spent approximately $640 million in 2010 on inefficient energy efficiency programs, representing over 21% of the nearly $3 billion total energy efficiency expenditure that year. This inefficiency stems from a one-size-fits-all approach that fails to account for diverse customer behaviors and needs.

Key findings include:

• A significant performance spread exists between low-performing utilities (spending over $64/MWh) and high-performing ones (less than $19/MWh).
• Diminishing returns on energy efficiency spending make it difficult for utilities to increase market penetration without modifying their approach.
• Utilities must move beyond simple customer type (residential, commercial, industrial) to utilize deeper customer analytics, including energy usage patterns, seasonality, and customer engagement data, to identify attractive segments and tailor programs accordingly.

To capture savings, utilities should:

1. Replace standard segmentation with behavior-based analytics.
2. Develop customer-level insights through internal and external data.
3. Use predictive models to target specific customer segments, enabling scaled program launch without transactional metrics.
4. Analyze past utility program participation data to refine offers and messages.
5. Work with regulators to design incentives that encourage incremental energy savings.

The core conclusion is that utilities must gain a deeper understanding of customer behavior and preferences to optimize their energy efficiency investments, thereby improving performance and closing the efficiency gap.