From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Energy Rebate Program
Energy Rebate Program
Program,
An Energy Rebate Program or Energy Credit Incentive about $4.5 billion. This total is expected to double over
Program provides a cash rebate program for customers
Program, the next five years.[1]
planning to install new, energy efficient information "According to projections from the U.S. Energy In-
technology (IT) equipment or cooling systems. These formation Administration, electricity generation around
programs push companies to construct more energy ef- the world will nearly double from about 17.3 trillion
ficient data centers, or to consolidate compute, storage kilowatt-hours (kWh) in 2005 to 33.3 trillion kWh in
and networking resources via virtualization technolo- 2030." [2] In the case of the U.S., its power grid simply
gies. will not be able to keep up with the growth and demand
An Energy Rebate Program is a simple way for cus- for additional power using conventional means. In the
tomers to apply and qualify for various energy rebates of- U.S., it’s estimated that reduction in peak demand by a
fered by energy service companies, or utilities, in their mere 5% would yield savings of about $66 billion over
respective coverage areas. To lower IT equipments car- 20 years --- to say nothing of the resulting reduction in
bon footprint, data center customers are looking at green house gas emissions that would accompany a 5%
processes for protecting and respecting the environment peak demand reduction.[2]
through eco-friendly operations and data center design. Many U.S. utility companies have developed energy
This idea is being pushed by organizations such as The rebate programs to provide IT companies incentives to
Green Grid, Climate Savers Computing Initiative and the use energy efficient equipment and help lower the power
Silicon Valley Leadership Group. Customer demand for demand for data centers.[3] The energy situation has dri-
energy rebates encourages the development of programs ven some IT vendors to offer "green" leases for IT equip-
for IT vendors’ computers, storage, networking or data ment that complement utilities’ Energy Rebate Pro-
center facilities. IT vendors are taking steps to provide grams. Energy rebates can be applied toward leases for
more energy efficient IT systems and working with utili- new IT equipment. Customers can benefit from lower
ties to secure rebate savings for customers and their new monthly lease payments, or accept the rebate as a cash
installations. infusion for their business or IT project.
Origins for Energy Rebate Programs offered by util-
History ities began with the Non-Residential New Construction
(NRNC) program. Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) targeted
In the past, data center designers and operators focused energy savings toward the IT industry (and other com-
more on data center reliability than on energy efficiency. mercial businesses).[4] Dozens of utilities are emulating
Equipment cooling concerns and the costs of water the PG&E programs nationally, and many more utility
cooled infrastructure in large scale IBM centers, for in- companies plan to implement an energy rebate program.
stance, was a significant, though secondary issue, in buy- A basis for the program is the Standard Performance
ing decisions. Increasingly data center power density is Contract (SPC). SPC offers non-residential customer for
leading to power and cooling limitations, companies installing new, high efficiency equipment or systems. For
have significant interest in energy efficiency as a poten- the period from 2009–2011, PG&E has reserved, for exam-
tial solution to data center issues. Customers are search- ple, $50 million in energy credit incentives for data cen-
ing to justify their costs on annual electricity costs, cool- ters alone.
ing costs, and power costs. Utilizing energy efficient
equipment and testing results of your data center enable
companies to pin point where potential cost-cutting pro-
Energy rebate application
cedures can take place. process for utilities
On August 2, 2007 in a report to the United States
Congress, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) A customer applies for energy credit incentive (rebate)
estimated that the energy used to power and cool servers prior to new IT equipment installation. An energy sav-
and data centers is significant in the United States. It is ings calculator (usually a spreadsheet analysis) is used
estimated that the IT sector consumed about 61 billion to estimate the energy savings and resulting energy re-
kilowatt-hours (kWh) in 2006 (1.5 percent of the total bate based on the initial 12-month installation period of
U.S. electricity consumption) for a total electricity cost of IT equipment. The energy savings calculator may be pro-
vided by the local utility, an energy certification partner,
or by the customer. Measurements included must be con-
1
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Energy Rebate Program
sistent with the program guidelines. No baseline analy- • Rebate is based on the number of physical servers
sis of existing IT equipment is required if PG&E’s Non- reduced
Residential New Construction] program is used and the • Up to a $200 rebate for each server removed
equipment has been pre-certified by PG&E.[5] Other utili- • Pre- and post-inspection required
ties may vary. • Varies by utility
Key Services Offered by Energy Certification Partners Maximum allowable energy rebates offered by qual-
to Validate Energy Savings and Rebates for IT Projects ifying utilities under the Non-Residential New Construc-
Energy Certification Partners are also often referred tion program will vary somewhat. For example, PG&E of-
to as Energy Service Companies, or ESCOs. An ESCO focus- fers a per-site maximum rebate of $500,000; San Diego
es on base-lining, measuring, and verifying energy savin- Gas & Electric (SDG&E) offers a per-site maximum rebate
gs and rebate incentives for the installation of new, ener- of $350,000. Under customized energy savings incentive
gy efficient equipment in data centers. The following are programs, such as the Energy Savings Bid from San Diego
key services that should be provided by the Energy Certi- Gas & Electric, there are no caps on energy rebates.
fication Partner selected by the customer:
• Provide help completing the utilities’ applications
for energy savings incentives (rebates).
Three programs utility compa-
• Perform all spreadsheet development, document as- nies offer for IT projects
sumptions and produce an energy calculator according
Utilities with actively funded IT rebate programs typical-
to utilities’ requirements, which will vary.
ly offer these three programs to match the planned IT
• Document the assumptions in the energy savings
project requirements. PG&E, for example, offers incen-
spreadsheet and summarize the approach taken to utili-
tives and rebates for retrofit projects as well as incen-
ties.
tives and design assistance for new construction projects
• Develop an additional validation report (if needed)
to help businesses save money and manage energy costs.
to describe the energy savings and resulting rebate due
Custom bid programs are also available.
to the installation of more efficient IT equipment and/or
Program #1: Non-Residential New Construction
data center.
(NRNC) or Savings By Design
• Interface utilities to negotiate and obtain qualifica-
Non-Residential New Construction (NRNC), also
tion for incentive rebates.
known in California as Savings By Design is a program for
• Assist customer in securing rebate check from their
commercial, industrial, high tech and agricultural cus-
utility.
tomers that encourages energy efficient building and
process design and construction. The program popular-
Energy rebate eligibility for IT ized in California by four investor-owned utilities under
the auspices of the California Public Utilities Commission
projects (CPUC), offers owners and their design teams a variety of
Generally, there are four eligible energy savings mea- services and follows the protocol outlined in the NRNC/
surements for IT equipment, all of which can be com- Savings By Design Program.[7]
bined. These energy savings incentives are offered by Program #2: Non-Residential Retrofit (NRR) Program
PG&E in 2009[6]: Customers installing new IT equipment can save elec-
1) IT Equipment Energy (Fans, Motors, Variable Speed tricity costs by qualifying for customized incentives for
Drives, Air Compression Systems) business energy efficiency retrofit projects involving the
• Rebate is based on the first year’s energy savings cal- installation of high efficiency equipment or data center
culated facilities. Total incentive payments (rebates) are based
• 9 cent incentive per kWh saved on actual reduction in energy usage. Customers and/or
• Varies by utility their Energy Certification Partners may sponsor projects
2) HVAC Energy (Air Conditioning and Refrigeration) under this approach and can assist with the completion
• Rebate is based on the first year’s energy savings cal- of application forms, confirmation of eligibility, and
culated guidance on any the technical aspects.[8]
• 15 cent incentive per kWh saved Program #3: Custom Bid Program
• Varies by utility Customers can receive energy rebates by installing
3) On-Peak Demand Reduction new, energy efficiency equipment. Customers design
• Based on reduction of kW during On-Peak Demand their own energy-saving project and propose the incen-
• Varies by utility tive amount necessary to implement the project. This
4) Server Reduction due to Consolidation and/or Vir- usually requires more effort and negotiation by the cus-
tualization tomer and/or Energy Certification Partner, but the po-
tential energy rebates can be greater than those offered
2
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Energy Rebate Program
through the New Construction or Retrofit programs. Construction". Pacific Gas and Electric Company.
Typically, measures applied for through a Custom Bid http://www.pge.com/mybusiness/
program cannot overlap other incentive programs such energysavingsrebates/rebatesincentives/inc/.
as the New Construction or Retrofit programs. Incentive Retrieved 2009-20-7.
levels will vary by utility. San Diego Gas and Electric pro- [5] "Non Residential New Construction (NRNC)".
vides an estimated timeline for the application process, Pacific Gas and Electric Company.
which allows customers to understand that a Custom Bid http://www.pge.com/mybusiness/
process can require more effort on behalf of the cus- energysavingsrebates/rebatesincentives/inc/.
tomer and the Energy Certification Partner to qualify for Retrieved 2009-23-7.
the rebate.[9] [6] "Rebates for Small Business and Existing Facilities".
Pacific Gas and Electric Company.
See also http://www.pge.com/mybusiness/
energysavingsrebates/rebatesincentives/ref/
• Electrical energy efficiency on United States farms index.shtml. Retrieved 2009-23-7.
• Renewable energy credit [7] "Non Residential New Construction (NRNC)".
Pacific Gas and Electric Company.
References http://www.pge.com/mybusiness/
energysavingsrebates/rebatesincentives/inc/.
[1] "EPA Report to Congress on Server and Data Center Retrieved 2009-30-7.
Energy Efficiency, August 3, 2007" (PDF). [8] "Non Residential Retrofit (NRR)". Pacific Gas and
http://www.energystar.gov/ia/partners/ Electric Company. http://pge.com/mybusiness/
prod_development/downloads/ energysavingsrebates/rebatesincentives/ief/
EPA_Report_Exec_Summary_Final.pdf. index.shtml. Retrieved 2009-30-7.
[2] ^ "Energy: Building the smart grid, June 4, 2009". [9] "Energy Savings Bid Program, 2009" (PDF).
The Economist. June 4, 2009. http://www.sdge.com/business/esc/documents/
http://www.economist.com/sciencetechnology/ 2009ESB.pdf.
tq/displaystory.cfm?story_id=13725843.
[3] "VFS Energy Credit Incentive Program -
Participating Utilities Link". Verari Systems. External links
http://verarifinancial.com/green.asp. Retrieved • Pacific Gas and Electric Website
2009-03-08. • Energy Information Administration - EIA
[4] "Non Residential New Construction: Resources for • EnergyStar: Utility and Regional Energy Efficiency
Energy-Efficient Non Residential New Program Sponsors (EEPS) Resources
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Energy_Rebate_Program&oldid=406132790"
Categories:
• Energy conservation in the United States
• Computers and the environment
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