Using DOE Industrial Energy Audit Data for Utility Program Design

Abstract

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Energy Analysis and Diagnostic Center Program has offered no-cost energy conservation audits to industrial plants since 1976. The EADC program has maintained a database of detailed plant and audit information since 1980. In 1992, DOE and Baltimore Gas & Electric Company (BG&E) agreed to conduct a joint demonstration project in which the EADC database would be used to assist BG&E in planning demand-side management (DSM) programs for its industrial customers. BG&E identified a variety of useful applications of the database including: estimating conservation potential, identifying conservation measures for inclusion in programs, target marketing of industries, projecting DSM program impacts, and focusing implementation efforts. Over the course of the project, BG&E identified a variety of strengths and limitations associated with the database when used for utility planning. To encourage the use of the data by other utilities and interested parties, DOE is preparing an EADC database package for general distribution in April 1993.