Commercial and Industrial Demand Response Under Mandatory Time-of-Use Electricity Pricing
Event Details
Presenter
David Rapson
Abstract
This paper evaluates the extent to which a mandatory time-of-use (TOU) pricing program changes the energy use of commercial and industrial electricity customers. We use firm-level panel data on monthly electricity expenditure, usage and peak load that correspond to one of the first large-scale field deployments of a mandatory TOU regime. The analysis yields four major findings: (1) there is little evidence of change in aggregate usage or load resulting from TOU pricing in this setting; (2) on average, after adjusting for a rate-class discount implicit in the price schedule, bills are unchanged and increases in bill volatility are minimal; and (3) there is significant heterogeneity of response to TOU across industries. Together, these imply that the TOU regime did not generate the intended response by firms, calling into question the efficacy of the policy at the observed price differential. Our results also suggest that concerns about mandatory TOU pricing, namely high bill levels and increased bill volatility, have been overstated.
Date
Thursday, October 6, 2011
12 - 1:30 p.m.
Lunch will be provided
Location
7th Floor Conference Center
1616 P St. NW
Washington, D.C. 20036
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Participants
David Rapson