Conservation Programs
Dispersed Generation/Interruptible Load Program
DESCRIPTION: Beginning January 1, 2000, Elk River Municipal Utilities (ERMU) provided an incentive to encourage on-site customer-owned generation. The target market consisted of those commercial accounts that already own backup generators of at least 100 kW, or were considering an investment in backup generation of at least 100 kW due to the critical nature of their business. Effective May 1, 2003, that program was expanded to include commercial accounts of at least 100 kW that are willing and able to interrupt at least 100 kW of load.
AVAILABILITY: This Program is available to commercial customers served by ERMU which have sufficient load to fully utilize the output of between 100 kW and 1000 kW of on-site generation capacity or that can interrupt between 100 kW and 1000 kW of load. Customers with on-site generation in excess of 1000 kW or with in excess of 1000 kW of interruptible load may also qualify for this Program, but special terms and conditions may apply. Program participants must agree to operate their on-site generator, or limit operations to interrupt all or a mutually agreed upon portion of their electric load upon notification by ERMU or its designated agent. This Program applies to qualifying customers subject to the following Conditions of Service:
| 1. | The Customer must be operating between the hours of 4 PM and 9 PM and have between 100 kW and 1000 kW of electric load that can be either switched to a standby generator or interrupted upon notification by ERMU or its designated agent. |
| 2. | The Customer must provide access to a phone line for notification and remote meter reading. |
| 3. | The Customer who selects billing under this Dispersed Generation/Interruptible Load Program must agree to remain on the Program for at least one year. A written Agreement stating term, incentive, terms and conditions of service, and safety and operating standards will be required. See either the Dispersed Generation Agreement or Commercial Interruptible Load Agreement for details. |
| 4. | The Customer must provide an acceptable means to transfer all, or a mutually agreed upon portion of the Customer load to the on-site generator upon notification by ERMU. If the Customer does not have on-site generation, the Customer must have a means to reduce load to a predetermined demand level (PDL) within 30 minutes following notification by ERMU. |
| 5. | Time and duration of on-site generator operation or interruption shall be at the discretion of ERMU but will not exceed 10 hours per occurrence for those with a generator or 6 hours per occurrence for those who have interruptible load. |
| 6. | Operation of Customer’s generation and collateral equipment or interruption of load must not cause any reduction in the quality of service provided by ERMU to any other customer. |
| 7. | It is the Customer’s responsibility to supply fuel and maintain the on-site generator and collateral equipment to meet the electric power requirements during periods of operation. Customer will be reimbursed for fuel used in excess of 80 hours per year run time. That reimbursement will be based on current cost of diesel fuel converted to a cost per kilowatt-hour as determined by ERMU’s wholesale power supplier. There is no fuel reimbursement for those Customers who do not have on-site generation. |
| 8. | Notification of intent to operate Customer’s on-site generator by ERMU will be made to give at least thirty minutes notice. In emergency situations, automatic startup may occur simultaneously with notification. Customers without on-site generation will be given 30 minutes to reduce load to the PDL. |
| 9. | If the on-site generator fails to perform or the load is not reduced to the PDL during any calendar month, the Customer will not receive the monthly demand credit. If the on-site generator fails to perform or the load is not reduced to the PDL more than two times in any calendar year, ERMU reserves the right to remove the Customer from the Program. |
| 10. | The generator installation or method used to interrupt load must conform to ERMU service requirements, and must conform to all local and national safety codes. |
| 11. | The Customer must continue to purchase all electric energy and electric energy delivery services from ERMU for the contract period. |
INCENTIVE: Customers under contract to interrupt load down to a PDL, or with operational on-site generation participating in this Program will receive monthly credits based on the amount of electric demand (kW) which can be interrupted or transferred from ERMU’s delivery system to the on-site generator. The monthly credit remains fixed for the years 2003 - 2006, but varies by season as follows:
Monthly Credit Per KW Transferred*
Summer (June, July and Aug) $11.00 per kw
Winter (Dec, Jan, and Feb) $ 5.50 per kw
Spring/Fall (Sept, Oct, Nov, $ 2.50 per kw
Mar, Apr, and May)
*Credit applies only during months in which Customer agrees to interrupt load
to a PDL or when the Customer’s generator is fully operational and/or operates
within limits prescribed in the Agreement.
CREDIT DETERMINATION: Customer’s monthly demand credit shall be based on the amount of load which can be either interrupted or transferred from ERMU’s delivery system to the Customer’s on-site generator at a time specified by ERMU or its designated agent. There must be sufficient load to interrupt or transfer to the standby generator between the hours of 4 PM and 9 PM to allow for a reduction of at least 100 kW.
Compensation to Customer shall be paid as a credit applied to Customer’s monthly electric bill from ERMU, and shall not be paid to Customer in cash. That monthly credit shall be determined by establishing a mutually agreed upon average monthly kW demand reduction multiplied by the appropriate seasonal rate in effect for that month.
No other credits or financial incentives will be provided by ERMU to the Customer under this Program.
METERING: The Monthly customer charge shall be increased to $50 per month to cover the cost of program administration. Cost of special metering required for credit determination will be billed to the Customer. ERMU will retain ownership of and maintenance for all special metering required to administer this Program.
Revised 4/06