Page Menu

RIDER EECLP: Energy Efficiency & Conservation Loan Program

Availability

Service under this Rider shall be available in all territory served by the Cooperative and shall be subject to the Cooperative’s established Service Rules and Regulations as filed with the North Carolina Utilities Commission. This Rider is a voluntary tariff available to Consumers for the purpose of improving resource efficiency and reducing their net utility bill. This Rider is available to all consumers taking service under Rate Schedules C (Residential), F and F ─ TOD (Commercial), and H, H ─ TOD, and I (Large Commercial/Large Power).

EECLP Investment and Repayment Terms

  1. No up-front investment is required by participating Consumers. The initial cost of approved energy efficiency measures will be paid by the Cooperative.
  2. The EECLP repayment obligation shall be assigned to the premises and will survive changes in ownership and/or tenancy.
  3. EECLP program costs shall be recovered through a monthly EECLP Charge on the utility bill.
  4. The EECLP Charge shall be treated the same as the Cooperative’s charges for electric service. Failure to make payment may result in disconnection in accordance with the Cooperative’s approved Service Rules and Regulations.
  5. The EECLP Charge shall be less than or equal to seventy-five (75) percent of the estimated average savings associated with the investment.
  6. The Cooperative will be responsible for estimating resource savings and developing a Conservation Plan upon which the EECLP Charge will be based.
  7. If the energy efficiency measure is determined to be faulty, the Cooperative will assess the failure, suspend the EECLP Charge to the degree that savings are compromised, initiate and verify repairs, assign costs to the responsible party, and reinstitute the EECLP charge. If the measure cannot be remedied, the Consumer is released from any obligation to pay.

Conservation Plan

The Conservation Plan will be developed by the Cooperative and specify measures recommended by the Cooperative to the prospective EECLP Consumer. The Conservation Plan includes:

  • Estimated Resource Savings ─ The modeled change(s) in costs of resources consumed at the premise attributable to the efficiency measure(s) recommended. The Cooperative will be solely responsible for savings estimates and will utilize generally accepted modeling software and techniques.
  • EECLP Charge ─ The charge to be included on Consumer’s utility bill will be based on the cost of the proposed measure(s) and the resulting savings. The Cooperative will be solely responsible for calculating the EECLP Charge utilizing its standard economic model of discounted cash flows. To the extent available, the Cooperative will incorporate rebates into the calculation of the EECLP Charge.
  • In calculating the EECLP Charge, the Cooperative may add up to five (5%) percent of the cost of proposed projects as bid by qualified contractors to offset EECLP program costs. The annual interest rate used to calculate the EECLP Charge shall be no more than one and one-half percent (1 ½ %) above the cost of the capital used by the Cooperative to finance the project.
  • EECLP Audit Fee – Building owners (Consumers or Landlords) will be charged a $175.00 Audit Fee for completed Conservation Plans. The charge may be waived for Consumers or Landlords who decline to participate.
  • Number of Payments ─ The number of periods for which the EECLP Charge will apply at the premises. Unless otherwise specified herein, the EECLP charge shall not exceed the estimated life of the measure or ten (10) years, whichever is less.
  • In the event that multiple measures are being completed as part of a Conservation Plan, the EECLP Charge will not appear on the Consumer’s bill until all measures have been completed.

A Consumer’s and Landlord’s (if applicable) signature on the EECLP Agreement shall indicate acceptance of the Conservation Plan.

Uneconomic Measures

A Consumer or Landlord may elect to “buy down” the cost of implementing an efficiency measure so that the EECLP Charge will be less than the average estimated monthly savings. In this way, measures that might not otherwise yield sufficient economic savings to pay for themselves may still be approved. Prior to the Cooperative’s approval of a Conservation Plan that includes one or more uneconomic measures, the Consumer Landlord or a third party must agree to pay the amount required to buy down said measure(s) such that the EECLP Charge is no greater than seventy-five (75) percent of the estimated savings.

New Structures

A Consumer or Owner may utilize this Rider to install high-efficiency equipment or measures in new structures. The Cooperative will only invest at a maximum the difference in cost between the lowest allowable or “standard” efficiency equipment or measure required in the structure and the higher efficiency equipment or measure chosen by the Contractor, Consumer, or Owner. Under any circumstances, the EECLP Charge to appear on the participant’s bill must be less than the average estimated cost of resources saved by the purchase of the higher efficiency equipment or measures.

Responsibilities

Responsibilities, understandings, and authorizations of Consumers, Cooperative, Landlord (if applicable), and Participating Contractor shall be evidenced by written agreements, notifications, and disclosures/consents, the forms of which are made a part of this Rider.

Transition in Roles

Unless otherwise specifically set forth in a standard EECLP agreement made part of this Rider, responsibility for outstanding EECLP obligations falls on the successor party when the roles of Consumer, Landlord, or Tenant change, provided the required disclosure is made and consent to assume the obligation is obtained. For example: If a tenant purchases an apartment complex, that individual assumes the obligations of the Landlord if the disclosure is made and consent is obtained.

Other

  1. This Rider only applies to EECLP measures permanently installed as fixtures at the premises. Portable efficiency products such as compact fluorescent lights do not qualify under this Rider. The Cooperative will solely determine the permanence of measures or products.
  2. Premises in which the EECLP measures will be installed must be permanently anchored to a foundation.
  3. At its sole discretion, the Cooperative may determine the maximum program investment in any year.
  4. The Cooperative will determine the eligibility of a Consumer based on the Consumer’s bill payment history with the Cooperative, projected energy savings, and program capacity. At its sole discretion, the Cooperative may determine a property is not eligible for the program and does not qualify for this Rider if:
    1. The structure has an expected life shorter than the payback period, or
    2. The structure does not meet applicable public safety or health codes.