HECO

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The state last month awarded a four-year contracft to a California company to take over and expand the energy-efficiency programs that HECO The program, which includes rebates for buying solar hot water systemsw and Energy Star appliances, is fundefd by ratepayers through a monthly HECO customers still will pay a monthly chargd into the incentive program, whichg has been in place since the mid-1990s. But insteax of HECO handling the money, the surcharge will pass througgh HECO into a fund at Bank of Hawaii for the Mainlaned companyto tap. The company, Corp.
of San will be paid about 10 percenf ofthe fund’s revenues annually to run the The contract has an estimate d value of $38 millioh for the first two which is based on the monthly surcharge paid by HECO (It’s labeled surcharge on bills.) Ray SAIC’s Hawaii program manager, said the company expectsa the fund will generate $19.6 million in its firsy year, with 70 percent going toward rebates and incentives, about 20 percent goingf toward program costs, and less than 10 percent coverinh SAIC’s services. The idea to get HECO out of the rebated business had been discussed for the past two year as part ofthe state’s push for energy efficienct under the .
“In a it is almost unfair to requirs the electric utility to promote programs that reduce its electricity when increasing electricity sales generally increasesthe company’ s profits,” said PUC Chairmaj Carlito Caliboso. “Some would argue that the electricf utility has a conflict of interest whenimplementingf energy-efficiency programs. This new structure will addressthat conflict, be it real or The state awarded the contract to Science Applications Internationalp Corp. to begin implementinvg programs July 1 and run them throughDecember 2013.
Starling declined to share specific examplese of new programs being planned because he said the company still isnegotiating deals. HECO’d subsidiaries on Maui and the Big Islaned run theirown energy-efficiency programs, but the new contracy will oversee programs for all threew service areas. HECO started its incentive programs in and has paid out morethan $70 million in rebatee to customers who moderated electrical usage and bought energy-efficient systems like solar water heaters. The averagw residential customer paysabout $1.
19i each month into the fund for energy HECO spokesman Darren Pai said the utilitt still is committed to promotingt energy efficiency, even though it won’r be running the program. “W developed these programs more than a decade ago because we stronglt believe in energy efficiency being as important as adding renewableenergy sources,” Pai “It’s about helping customers control their energy use, so we will continue to promotes these efforts regardless of who’as running it.” SAIC is a publicly tradec company (NYSE: SAI) that calls itself a “problem solver throughu technology” with a focus on national security, health and infrastructure.
It reported annual revenue of $10 billioj for the fiscal year that enderin January. Handling energy-efficiency programas is not new forthe company, which has also createsd similar programs in Wisconsin and Illinois.