Ohio Utility Seeks To Offer Smart Home Program; Customer Insights, Demand Response

As part of a rate case filed with the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, Dayton Power & Light is seeking to offer a new smart homes program

In the rate case, DP&L seeks to, "narrow the scope of the DSM [demand side management] programs that it currently provides, and requests to recover the costs of those programs through distribution rates."

Although utilities are no longer required by statute to offer energy efficiency programs, DP&L proposes a new suite of narrowed "Customer Programs" to continue to provide savings opportunities for all residential customers as well as small- and medium-sized business customers

Of note among the new program is a "Smart Homes" program for residential customers

"Smart Homes will offer services that will either directly reduce energy consumption or will motivate customers to better manage their energy use through education. Services may include home energy reports, a customer insight portal, online home energy assessments, and demand response services. Education offerings will include periodic customer communications from the utility regarding customer-specific benchmarking and tips about how to reduce their usage. Demand response services will reward customers for allowing DP&L to better manage electricity demand during summer months. As new energy-efficient services are introduced to the market or emerge as valuable to customers, they will be evaluated for addition to the program," DP&L said in an exhibit in its rate case

As part of the program, DP&L will partner with Vectren Energy Delivery of Ohio to jointly offer a behavior change program by sending co-branded reports and sharing vendor costs

Further specifics on the services to be offered under the program were not included

Case 20-1653-EL-ATA et al.