A recent Sound Off submission said Washington Electric Utilities customers should not complain about electric rates if they are not participating in WEU’s load-management program.
The caller who made that submission has a point. Participation in the program is free. Under the program, devices are installed on some electric appliances such as electric water heaters, heat pumps/central air conditioners and auxiliary heat sources such as heat strips. Those devices, which are radio-controlled, allow the city to turn off those appliances during times when peak demands are expected. That saves the city and its power customers money. WEU customers in the load-management program receive credits amounting to several dollars each month on their electric bills. Although an individual WEU customer participating in the program will save a few dollars each month, the savings systemwide is significant.
During budget talks last year, WEU Director Keith Hardt said having all qualified WEU customers participating in the load-management program would save the city — and its qualified power customers — about $1.3 million a year. That’s a significant amount.
WEU customers not participating in the program should at least consider doing so. After all, every little bit of savings helps, at the individual level and at the systemwide level.