Some are in it for the money. Others say they are motivated by environmental reasons. “For my children  … for their children and their grandchildren. For the future and the planet,” says one customer.

These are among the multi-ethnic group of customers, and their very cute kids, featured in testimonials for Pepco’s Energy Wise program.

Energy Wise is Pepco’s contribution to the EmPOWER Maryland initiative, created by the legislature with a goal of reducing energy consumption by 15% below 2007 levels by 2015.

The Maryland Public Service Commission’s Walter Hall and Pepco’s Gloria Godson worked doggedly to ensure PJM’s new rules on demand response would not ruin such “mass market” programs. As a result of their efforts, PJM’s new requirement for 30-minute dispatch exempts residential customers who cannot respond so quickly.

Results to Date

Three utilities and one cooperative run demand response programs under EmPOWER Maryland. In 2012, the utilities for the first time exceeded their annual savings forecasts, doing so by more than one-third. Still, they were only at 41% of their energy reduction and 51% of the demand reduction goals for 2015.

Much of the reductions to date have resulted from the lackluster economy, moderate temperatures and distributed generation. With direct load control programs beginning to reach saturation levels, officials said they will need contributions from combined heat and power and dynamic pricing to reach their goals.

The state, which spent $729 million on the program through 2012, approved an additional $95 million in funding last month. The funding comes largely from customer surcharges and capacity market revenues. The state expects to collect more than $57 million in capacity revenues for delivery year 2014/15 and $66.5 million for DY 2015/16.

Pepco’s Program

Pepco’s program includes three options for “cycling” air conditioners or heat pumps during PJM emergencies between June and October.

During an emergency, or “conservation period,” the air conditioner fan continues to circulate air but the compressor operations are reduced. Under the 50% option, the compressor operates half of the time it did in the hour prior to the conservation period, allowing temperatures to rise 1 to 3 degrees. It pays $40 a year.

There are also 75% cycling ($60/yr.) and 100% cycling ($80/yr.) options. The 100% option, which shuts down the compressor for the entire emergency, can result in temperatures rising up to 7 degrees and is not recommended for consumers with cardiac or respiratory conditions. Each program includes a one-time “installation credit” or signing bonus equal to the annual payment.

Pepco contributed about one-fifth of the state’s economic and emergency DR.

Baltimore Gas & Electric Co. runs the biggest program in Maryland, responsible for three-quarters of the state’s economic DR and 63% of emergency.

BGE’s Peak Rewards offers an air conditioning program similar to Pepco’s but with bigger savings ($50/$75/$100). BGE also offers a 100% hot water heater cycling program which pays $25 per year. It also conducted 63,000 home energy checkups in 2012.

Maryland represents nearly one–third of the 2,200 MWs enrolled in economic DR programs in PJM — more than any other state — but ranks behind Pennsylvania and Ohio in the emergency program with 15% of the 7,346 total. The top six states are responsible for more than 80% of the reductions in each of the programs.