Evaluation of Public Service Electric & Gas Company's Standard Offer Program

This paper discusses results from a process and impact evaluation of the Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G) Standard Offer program. During the first 18 months of the pilot program, about 40 MW of summer prime period average demand savings are in various stages of development with about nine MW in commercial operation. Sixteen energy service companies (ESCOs) and nineteen large customers have sponsored projects. However, a single ESCO affiliated with PSE&G accounts for about 43 percent of the program savings and has also financed many projects sponsored by other ESCOs and customers, which in conjunction with its own projects, represent about 60-70 percent of the program's savings. Lighting and fuel switching measures account for about 65 percent and 17 percent of the summer prime period averaging demand savings, respectively. Total program costs, including both utility payments and costs borne by customers, average about 6.8 c/kWh levelized over the term of the contracts (usually 10 years)