Dive Brief:
- National Grid and Opower have expanded their demand management partnership in the Northeast, adding millions of New York customers to an engagement and efficiency platform the companies say has saved $100 million in other states.
- Opower began working with National Grid in Massachusetts, expanding its platform to Rhode Island customers in 2013.
- In those states, company officials said customers have saved enough energy to eliminate the carbon dioxide created from powering nearly 48,000 homes for an entire year.
- Last year, Opower announced it had used energy efficiency to help National Grid customers reduce their power consumption by 300 million Kwh.
Dive Insight:
Opower's work with National Grid will now reach more than 5 million customers, the companies announced last week, a "significant expansion" of successful programs in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Almost 3 million residents in New York will have access to online energy insights, including 1.3 million who will also receive Home Energy Reports for the first time.
“Our partnership with Opower is part of National Grid’s commitment to providing a modern, 21st century utility experience to our customers,” said Terry Sobolewski, chief customer officer of National Grid. “Our customers in Massachusetts and Rhode Island have saved $100 million on their energy bills with this innovative program, and we are excited to offer our New York State customers the tools and resources to do the same."
Sobolewski said expanding the partnership into the Empire State would also support New York’s Reforming the Energy Vision initiative, aimed at grid modernization. The multi-year deal will deliver personalized communications and energy insights to its residents across New York, Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
“We’re thrilled that our program is being expanded across National Grid’s entire service territory,” said Opower CEO Dan Yates. “National Grid has long been one of the nation’s most forward-thinking utilities and a leader in energy efficiency. We’re pleased to partner with them to deliver a dynamic and informative experience for their customers across these three states and contribute to their REV goals in New York.”
National Grid was the first utility on the east coast to deploy Opower’s energy efficiency program for customers in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
Opower announced a new suite of demand management offerings to utilities earlier this month, boasting it can crunch enough data to "create a holisitic view of each customer." And while the company continues to expand its offerings, Greentech Media pointed out the company lowered 2016 revenue expectations by $11 million in February, causing the stock price to drop 20%.