Municipal Electric Utilities

Automatic Pay Option

Load Management Information

Energy Efficiency Program

May 2002

WE NEED YOUR HELP AND SUPPORT

The City of Hawarden, in an effort to reduce electric purchasing costs and help to hold down electric rates, is trying to restart our Electric Load Management Program. This is the same system that has been deployed for years and that exists in over 350 homes that have previously volunteered to help reduce costs. We now need to check out those existing systems to get our system going again and add homes to realize additional savings.

1. What incentives are available? As part of restarting the Load Management Program the City will now offer incentives for participating homes and will reduce the rotation time of the appliances. For participating homes we will offer a discount of $2.50 per month for an electric hot water heater on the system and an additional $5.00 per month for a central air unit on the system for the months of June, July, August, and September. The incentives are a little reward for those who are helping us control costs. The incentives are planned to take effect in June and will show up on your July bill. We will also be reducing the rotation time per hour to 10 minutes or less. Previously this was set at 15 minutes or longer.
2. What does the system involve/costs? The system involves running wires and installing a box in your home that will control your air conditioner or hot water heater through a breaker. A computerized system will monitor the City's electric load and take load management actions as the City's total electric usage begins to peak. A signal will then be sent over the electric lines that will trip the breaker and will shut off those appliances for 10 minutes per hour during peak periods. After the ten minutes the system will turn your appliances back on and rotate to the next group of homes in the City. The City will install (and remove the system if requested) at no cost to the business or homeowner.
3. What is load management? Load management is a system that attempts to level out the City's electric demand during peak electric usage. Put plainly, it is a system that shuts off an air conditioner or electric hot water heater for ten minutes out of an hour, so that everybody's air conditioner or electric hot water heater are not on at the same time. The cycling off of these appliances are seamless to the homeowner, but the cost savings can be significant to the City in helping hold down rates.
4. How do I sign up? For all homes and businesses (including those already on the program) simply fill out the form in your utility bill send it in with your next bill or drop it by the City offices to get signed up. During the next several months we will begin contacting you for an appointment to check out the existing equipment or get on the system for the first time. [ed: You can download a .PDF file here and fill it out and return it to the city.]