(PORTLAND, OR) -- The Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (NEEA), in partnership with the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) and electric utilities throughout the Northwest, are hosting the third annual Efficiency Exchange conference in Portland, April 21-23. The region-wide event focuses on promoting innovation and new ideas in utility energy efficiency programs. BPA and NEEA are producing and sponsoring the event, with support from the Northwest Power and Conservation Council.
“This is the pre-eminent utility energy efficiency forum in the Northwest,” said Richard Génecé, vice president of Energy Efficiency for the Bonneville Power Administration. “It’s an opportunity for utilities, implementers and contractors to exchange ideas and best practices, and it continues our region’s legacy of leadership in energy efficiency.”
Attendees will build new relationships, better understand emerging trends in the industry, and gain knowledge from the conference for their own organizations.
“Energy efficiency is now the second-largest source of power in the Northwest, and we anticipate the importance of efficiency will continue to grow as reducing carbon emissions grows in importance as a public policy goal,” said Pat Smith, a Montana member of the Northwest Power and Conservation Council and chair of the Council’s Power Committee. “We are pleased to support this event and to work with Bonneville, NEEA and our other partners to discuss and strategize on ways to improve energy efficiency in the region.”
Jeremiah Owyang is the keynote speaker at this year’s conference. Owyang is the founder of Crowd Companies, which advises businesses on tapping into the collaborative economy. He will discuss the latest trends and research in this new sharing movement, as well as how utilities can thrive in a world where customers, technology and energy are intersecting in disruptive ways.
Attendees will also get an insider’s look at how energy efficient technologies are tested, refined and applied to a number of local industries. The final day of the conference includes on-site tours of Widmer Brothers’ energy efficient brewery and a lunch-and-learn meeting with the Northwest Power and Conservation Council.
Other sessions will cover energy efficiency technologies and trends such as the Internet of Things, combination water/space heating, and paths to deeper savings in commercial buildings and lighting.
“The Northwest is an established leader in energy efficiency,” said NEEA’s executive director, Susan E. Stratton. “Efficiency Exchange brings together thought leaders and program experts to share new ideas and insights that benefit the whole region.”
Between sessions, attendees can visit the Conduit Lounge and register, post and share information on Conduit, an online community that facilitates collaboration and coordination among energy efficiency professionals in the Northwest.
View the full agenda of the conference at efficiencyexchangenw.com.
About the Bonneville Power Administration
The Bonneville Power Administration, headquartered in Portland, Ore., is a nonprofit federal power marketing agency under the U.S. Department of Energy that sells wholesale renewable hydropower from federal dams in the Columbia Basin and one nuclear plant to more than 140 Northwest utilities. BPA operates a high-voltage transmission grid comprising more than 15,000 circuit miles of lines and associated substations in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana with more than 480 customers. It funds one of the largest wildlife protection and restoration programs in the world, and, with its partners, pursues cost-effective energy savings in all sectors of the economy. BPA also pursues breakthroughs that can increase efficiencies, solve operational challenges and reduce costs — all of which help maintain affordable, reliable electric power for the Northwest and lessen impacts to the environment. www.bpa.gov
About the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance
The Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance is an alliance of more than 140 utilities and energy efficiency organizations working on behalf of more than 13 million energy consumers. NEEA is dedicated to accelerating both electric and gas energy efficiency, leveraging its regional partnerships to advance the adoption of energy-efficient products, services and practices.
Since 1997, NEEA and its partners have saved enough energy to power more than 700,000 homes each year. As the second-largest resource in the Northwest, energy efficiency can offset most of our new demand for energy, saving money and keeping the Northwest a healthy and vibrant place to live. www.neea.org
About the Northwest Power and Conservation Council
The Northwest Power and Conservation Council is an agency of the four Northwest states of Idaho, Oregon, Montana, and Washington. Under the Northwest Power Act of 1980, the Council develops a Northwest Power Plan to assure the region an adequate, efficient, economical, and reliable power supply while protecting, mitigating and enhancing fish and wildlife that have been affected by the construction and operation of hydropower dams in the Columbia River Basin. Through the power plan the Council sets strategies and establishes targets for energy efficiency in the region, and through the Regional Technical Forum (www.nwcouncil.org/energy/regionaltechnicalforum), the Council and other forum partners work to verify that efficiency measures implemented by utilities produce real savings.
