Mid-2024 HVAC Controls and Ventilation Rebates Update

While the HVAC units themselves are well covered by utility rebate programs, the ancillary technologies that can provide additional efficiencies through controls and ventilation upgrades are increasingly covered by utilities as well.   In this update, we want to provide a snapshot of changes in these incentives occurring in these commercial and industrial rebate utility rebate programs, focusing on WiFi-thermostats, Advanced Rooftop Controls, Demand Controlled Ventilation and Energy Recovery Ventilation.  There are more solutions in this category that we track incentives for, but these are the ones seeing the most changes in incentive levels. We haven't been addressing these technologies in our annual report and webinar, but we have initiated a deeper analysis of these programs that we are kicking off with this article. 

For this article, the focus is on rebate programs that have made changes to their rebates from mid-March 2023 to July 31, 2024. Rebates covered here are of the downstream/prescriptive variety, but WiFi-thermostats have a few midstream/instant program changes as well.

While Variable Speed/Frequency Drives(VSD/VFD) are a common efficiency improvement to HVAC systems, it is a well enough supported technology in HVAC as well as in industrial control applications that it will be covered in a separate article.

Wifi Thermostats

• Baltimore Gas & Electric - Increase in instant rebate per unit
• Ameren(IL) - Increase in instant rebate per unit
• Upper Peninsula Power(MI) - Increase per square foot
• Cedar Falls(IA) - Increase per unit
• Denton(TX) - Increase per unit
• Austin Energy - Increase per unit
• Efficiency Works(CO) - Increase per ton controlled
• Delaware Energy Efficiency Fund - Increase per unit
• Xcel Energy (TX) - Decrease per sensor
• Atlantic City Electric - Decrease per unit
• Duke Energy Carolinas - Decrease per unit
• Duke Energy Indiana - Decrease per unit
• Tacoma Power- Decrease per sensor
  
  

Advanced Rooftop Controls(ARC)

ARC is a term that has a variety of specific definitions depending on the utility.  Generally to qualify for a rebate, the building must install one or several of the following on to their packaged unitary systems: Variable Frequency/Speed Drive, Digital Integrated Economizer Control, CO2 Demand Controlled Ventilation and Web-enabled monitoring and control.

• CPS Energy(TX) - Increase per kWh saved
• Energy Trust Oregon - Increase per ton controlled
• Efficiency Works (CO) - Increase per ton controlled
• Emerald PUD(OR) - Increase per ton controlled
• Cowlitz County PUD(WA) - Increase per ton controlled
• Lewis County PUD(WA) - Increase per ton controlled
• Clark County PUD(WA) - Increase per ton controlled
• Grays Harbor County PUD(WA) - Increase per ton controlled
• Ameren(MO) - Increase per ton controlled
• Pacific Power(WA) - Increase per unit

Ventilation

• Austin Energy - Increase in Energy Recovery Ventilation
• SMUD - Increase in Demand Controlled Ventilation

Overall, the trend is higher incentives, which given the focus on HVAC generally isn't surprising. We will review these rebates again in March of 2025 and provide more detail about coverage and trends.