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U.S. Department of Energy Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy

Energy Incentive Programs, New Hampshire

Updated August 2011

What public-purpose-funded energy efficiency programs are available in my state?

In 2002, the New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission allocated 1.8 mills per kWh of the state's systems benefits charge to fund energy efficiency programs implemented by the state's investor-owned utilities. Nearly $30 million was spent in 2010 across all program types (including low-income and residential). There are a number of commercial programs available for small and large businesses that are also appropriate for federal facilities.

Energy efficiency programs are offered by four New Hampshire utilities: Public Service of New Hampshire (PSNH), National Grid, New Hampshire Electric Cooperative (NHEC), and Unitil Energy Systems, Inc. These utilities work together as the collaborative nhsaves with the New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission and other stakeholders. The programs include:

  • Large Businesses Retrofit Solutions: rebates and other incentives for energy-efficient technologies, including lighting, motors, VFDs, air compressors, and custom projects. For custom projects, technical assistance is also available. Preapproval from the utility is generally required. (PSNH, National Grid, NHEC, Unitil)

  • New Equipment and Construction: technical assistance and rebates for energy-efficient measures such as lighting, motors, VFDs, HVAC, chillers, air compressors, as well as custom projects. Preapproval from the utility is required. (PSNH, National Grid, NHEC, Unitil)

  • Small Business Energy Solutions Program: technical and financial assistance for small businesses (peak demand of less than 100 kW/month) to invest energy-efficient equipment, such as lighting, programmable thermostats, and occupancy sensors. Includes a free energy audit, and payment of half of the project cost with low-interest financing available for the balance. (PSNH, National Grid, NHEC, Unitil)

In additions, the utilities provide some unique programs:

Public Service of New Hampshire (PSNH) offers the Energy Rewards Program, which solicits proposals for electrical energy efficiency projects to be implemented at the facilities of commercial and industrial PSNH customers with a demand of 350 kW or more. PSNH commercial and industrial customers, energy service companies, and other service providers representing commercial and industrial customers are eligible to participate. The minimum project energy savings for this program is 100,000 kWh per year (which may be aggregated across multiple sites), and the minimum total project cost is $200,000.

National Grid (formerly Granite State Electric) provides technical assistance for large business customers to identify and implement energy efficiency measures.

New Hampshire Electric Co-op offers SmartSTART, an "on-bill financing" alternative to pay for energy-efficient lighting and other approved energy-saving measures. Rather than paying up front, the cost for these projects is distributed on monthly electricity bills in a way that preserves monthly savings.

Unitil (formerly Northern Utilities), and National Grid, offer programs for their gas customers as members of GasNetworks, providing rebates of up to $15,000 for high-efficiency gas-fired space and water heating equipment.

Unitil also offers the Energy Assesments program, in which large gas-consuming facilities (> 40,000 therms/yr.) receive a free walk-through audit followed by a 50% cost-shared (up to $7,500) scoping study to identify gas efficiency improvements. Installation of these retrofits is then cost-shared at 50%, up to $50,000 per master meter.

National Grid offers several other gas efficiency programs, including the following:

  • Prescriptive rebates are provided for common controls measures, such as programmable thermostats, boiler reset controls, and steam traps.

  • High Efficiency Gas Heating and Water Heating Rebates provide incentives for high efficiency gas space- and water-heating equipment, such as furnaces, condensing unit heaters and direct fired heaters. Additional incentives and technical assistance are available for the replacement of steam traps.

  • The Energy Efficiency Engineering Co-Funding Program offers cost sharing up to 50% (limited to $10,000 per project) for engineering studies aimed at improving efficiency of gas equipment.

What utility energy efficiency programs are available to me?

See above section for energy efficiency programs offered by utilities.

What load management/demand response options are available to me?

The Independent System Operator New England Inc. (ISO-NE) offers its Demand Response Programs, which provide payments to electricity users for load reductions (of as little as 100 kW), either by reducing usage or by operating on-site generation during periods of high demand. Customers may participate in the program through any participating member ("Enrolling Participant") of the New England Power Pool, such as a utility company, power marketer, competitive energy supplier, or independent curtailment service provider (CSP). The Enrolling Participant is allowed to aggregate load to reach the quantity qualification limit, so customers interested in these programs with less than 100 kW to offer may want to contact their utility or other eligible party. ISO-NE offers several options:

  • The Real-Time Demand Response Program provides an opportunity for customers to receive payments for voluntarily responding to system emergencies. Participants are paid for actual load reductions, based on the higher of the real time zonal price or a guaranteed floor price ($350/MWh for customers that can respond within 2 hours and $500/MWh for those that can respond within 30 minutes). Participants may receive additional incentives by qualifying as an installed capacity (ICAP) resource for their load reduction capacity, although response to system emergencies then becomes mandatory. In order to facilitate notification of emergency events and verification of load curtailments, customers must have an approved Internet-Based Communication System (IBCS) installed. Participating customers must also have interval metering installed at their facility.

  • The Real-Time Profile Response Program provides remuneration to customers without interval metering for voluntarily responding to system emergencies. The enrolling participant must have the physical ability to interrupt loads at the customer's facility within 30-minutes' notice of a system emergency. Payment for verified load reductions is based on the real-time zonal price, with a $100/MWh floor price. Participants may receive additional incentives by qualifying as an ICAP Resource for their load reduction capacity, although response to system emergencies then becomes mandatory.

  • The Real-Time Price Response Program provides customers with the opportunity to receive payments for voluntarily reducing load during periods when the real-time zonal price is projected to be high. ISO-NE will notify participants either the night before or day of an event if the zonal price is expected to exceed $100/MWh ($0.10/kWh). Participants can voluntarily respond to the notification and submit load data to verify their load reductions. Payment for verified load reductions is based on the real-time zonal price, with a $100/MWh floor price. Customers must have interval metering installed at their facility to participate in this program.

  • The Day-Ahead Load Response Program is a more sophisticated variant of the Real-Time Price Response Program. Customers submit offers of hourly load reductions into the day-ahead market and are then notified by their enrolling participant if the offers are accepted. If so, the customer must drop load during the cleared hours but is remunerated by the greater of its bid or the actual clearing price for those hours. Customers must have interval metering installed at their facility to participate in this program.

ISO-NE's Forward Capacity Market (FCM) allows customers to bid their load reduction capabilities – whether constant (such as an indoor lighting retrofit project), seasonal (such as a new energy-efficient chiller plant), or dispatch able (such as a back-up generator or demand management actions) – into a forward capacity auction that pits demand-side resources against supply-side ones. Bids that are accepted are paid the auction clearing price. These auctions take place periodically for commitment periods several years in the future. For instance, the first auction, for resources whose contribution to the grid began in June, 2010, took place in February, 2008. Future auctions are announced at the FCM web site.

PSNH offers its customers an additional demand response initiative, the PeakSmart program, which aims to promote demand response when consumption threatens to exceed supply on the grid or the New Hampshire zonal price is expected to surpass $0.20/kWh. Commercial customers with at least hourly interval meters are remunerated based on their committed and actual reductions of at least 100 kW per event.

What distributed energy resource options are available to me?

The Database of State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency (DSIRE) website provides information on programs that offer incentives for renewable distributed generation. The following programs may be of interest to federal customers:

  • National Grid's Solar Thermal Rebate Program, offers gas customers a one-time rebate covering up to 50% of the cost (up to $250,000 for new facilities) for solar thermal space or water heating installations and other custom projects.

  • New Hampshire Electric Co-op offers rebates of up to $750 for solar hot water installations.

  • New Generation Energy offers a Community Lending Program that provides up to $100,000 at interest rates as low as 2.0%, to small businesses and nonprofit organizations for solar thermal and photovoltaic installations.

  • The New Hampshire Public Utility Commission offers rebates for solar PV ($1.00/watt) and solar thermal ($0.07/kBTU/year), up to $50,000 or 25% of the total cost. This program is not open to municipal utility customers.

Are there energy efficiency programs sponsored by the state government?

No state government programs are currently available to federal customers.

What additional opportunities are available to me?

Federal customers whose utilities have area-wide supply contracts through GSA (e.g., National Grid), may be able to take advantage of 3rd-party financed energy efficiency projects called utility energy services contracts (UESCs). Information is available on GSA's Energy Center of Expertise Library Page. Federal facilities should contact their account executive to determine the level of each utility's participation.

NOTE: Energy efficiency funds and demand response programs are updated at least annually. Please contact the FEMP webmaster if changes are needed between updates.