BACK TO Clean Energy Dashboard Introduction

Glossary

Acquired Savings: Energy savings are generally considered acquired when both the measure is installed and currently operational, and the funds associated with the measure or project have been expended (i.e., a rebate check has been sent to the participant on a specific date or the PA has authorized payment for the project). In cases where realized savings occur with a significant lag to expenditures (such as where there is an evaluated measure adoption rate), acquired savings may be reported in a period following expenditures. In cases where expenditures continue beyond the time when a measure is installed and operational (e.g., performance or measurement milestone payments,) acquired savings may be reported in a period preceding full expenditure of project funding.
Annual Savings: Savings associated with a measure during a full year of installation.
Budget (Dollars): Program-related budgets are inclusive of funds spent on: Incentives & Services, Implementation, Tools, Training and Replication, Research and Technology Studies, and Business Support. Portfolio-level budgets include funds spent on Evaluation, Measurement and Verification of programs, as well as Administration costs.
CO2e Emission Reductions, Annual (Metric Tons): The carbon emissions reduction in CO2 equivalent metric tons attributed to annual energy savings using the emission factors established by DPS. In the case of fuel-switching scenarios, when information is available to PAs regarding the fuel switch, emission reductions reporting should be presented in the same manner as the energy impacts. That is, both the positive and negative impacts should be captured as well as the overall net impacts. See Appendix B of CE-10 Data Dictionary and Scorecard Guidance for applicable factors .
Committed Savings: Energy savings are considered committed when the funds associated with the measure are encumbered. This does not include acquired savings.
Direct Benefits: Direct benefits are impacts attributable to activities funded by Program Administrators.
Effective Useful Life (EUL): The median number of years that installed energy saving measures are considered effective at reducing energy consumption or demand. The EUL is provided as the program weighted average of all energy saving measures employed in the program.
Electricity Peak Demand Reductions, (MW): System peak demand reduction, expressed in units of MW, is measured as the difference between the existing demand of equipment or systems prior to installation of energy efficiency measures and the reduced demand of equipment or systems after installation of energy efficiency measures, coincident with the New York Control Area (NYCA) peak hours, defined as the hottest annual non-holiday weekday occurring during June, July, or August.
Electricity Savings, Annual (MWh): The annual MWh electricity savings that are associated with an energy saving measure.
Electricity Usage, Annual (MWh): The annual increased MWh consumption associated with fuel-switching from natural gas, oil, or other fuel type to electricity for a measure. This metric is reported as a negative value. Examples include heat pumps and electric vehicles.
Encumbered Funds: The current amount of funds that are tied to contracts or completed applications but for which the PA does not have in hand an executed contract.
Expended Funds: Funds that have been disbursed.
Fuel Savings, Annual (MMBtu): The annual fuel savings in millions of British thermal units (MMBtu) that are associated with an energy saving measure.
Fuel Usage, Annual (MMBtu): The annual increased MMBtu consumption associated with fuel-switching from one fuel type (e.g., electricity, gas, or oil) to another fuel type for a measure. This metric is reported as a negative value. Examples include combined-heat-and-power (CHP).
Fuel-type Funding Source: Identifies the ratepayers, either electric or gas, from which the funds are collected, through a surcharge or base rates, that comprise the portfolio budgets established through Commission Order.
Gross Savings: Savings as estimated by deemed savings approaches or algorithms contained in the Technical Resource Manual (TRM), or custom analysis/modeling, that have not been adjusted for free-ridership, spillover, or Verified Gross Savings realization rates.
Indirect Benefits: Indirect benefits are expected longer-term market effects from follow-on market activity that are not directly funded by PAs and most relevant in programs designed for market transformation rather than direct resource acquisition. Indirect impacts are grounded in a theory of change developed for each initiative and currently being assessed by NYSERDA using longitudinal market evaluation approaches.
Leveraged Funds (Dollars): Total estimated non-ratepayer leveraged funds, both private and public, including customer out-of-pocket costs, directly resulting from the program's acquired projects. This includes co-funding of pilots or projects at specific locations (e.g., hard costs for efficiency/renewable/distributed generation, metering and monitoring equipment like Energy Management Systems (EMS)/Building Management Systems (BMS), and soft costs of systems). If applicable, based on the type of initiative (e.g., where engagement with the customer is over a longer time period or enabling information/equipment is reasonably anticipated to impact actions longer term), and if such information is available, Direct Long Term Private Investment may be reported by PAs. This includes subsequent funding at specific pilot or project locations of measures taken as a result of prior supported investment.
Lifetime Savings: Savings over the lifetime of an installed measure, based on the measure's Effective Useful Life.
LMI/Market Rate: Identifies whether a program or program component is committing energy efficiency investments in a manner that is specifically intended to benefit disadvantaged communities and low- and moderate-income (LMI) consumers. LMI is defined as households at or below 80% of State or Area Median Income. Market Rate refers to the activity of a program or program component that does not qualify as LMI.
MMBtu: MMBtu stands for one million British thermal units (BTU) and is a measure of the energy content in fuel.
MW: A Megawatt (MW) is a unit of power equivalent to one million watts of electricity.
MWh: A megawatt-hour (MWh) is a unit of measure of electricity used over time and equivalent to one thousand kilowatt-hours or one million watt-hours.
New Efficiency New York: Indicates “Yes” or “No” as to whether a program counts towards the New Efficiency New York goals.
NYS Clean Heat: Indicates “Yes” or “No” as to whether a program counts towards the New York State Clean Heat goals.
Participant Bill Savings, Annual (Dollar): Estimated retail value of the avoided energy use or of the total clean generation produced by a renewable energy system for participants of a program. See Appendix B of CE-10 Data Dictionary and Scorecard Guidance for applicable factors .
Participants (Count): Number of entities or individuals for which incentives or services resulted in engagement and/or savings.
Program Administrator: An entity (NYSERDA or an investor-owned utility) which administers a program. Current program administrators included in the Dashboard are:
• CenHud is the Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corporation
• ConEd is Consolidated Edison also known as Con Edison
• KEDLI is KeySpan Gas East Corp., but doing business as National Grid
• KEDNY is the Brooklyn Union Gas Company, but doing business as National Grid NY
• LIPA is the Long Island Power Authority
• NFG is the National Fuel Gas Distribution Corporation
• NiMo is the Niagara Mohawk Power Corporation, but doing business as National Grid
• NYSEG is the New York State Electric and Gas Corporation
• O&R is the Orange and Rockland Utilities
• RG&E is the Rochester Gas and Electric Corporation
• NYSERDA is the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority
Plan: Program-level energy efficiency savings or performance goals, budgets and other benefits planned by each PA in effort to reach Targets.
Portfolio: Collection of programs or initiatives with common characteristics such as the manner in which the programs or initiatives were originally authorized, the manner of funding, etc. (e.g., CEF, EE Portfolio, Electric Vehicles, Demand Management, etc.).
Portfolios currently included in the dashboard are:
• The Clean Energy Fund (CEF)
• EE Transition stands for the Energy Efficiency Transition Implementation Plans (ETIPs)
• EE Portfolio is short for the energy efficiency programs and initiatives that have been incorporated into the utilities’ core businesses with associated costs recovered through base delivery rates.
Primary End-Use Sector: The sector in which the majority of the activity of a program or program component occurs (e.g., Residential, Multifamily, Commercial, Industrial, or Transportation).
Program Description: Brief text describing the program that is displayed as context within the Clean Energy Dashboard.
Renewable Energy Capacity, (MW): The capacity in Megawatts (MW) of renewable energy sources including, but not be limited to, solar photovoltaic, wind, anaerobic gas digester, fuel cells and solar thermal.
Renewable Energy Generation, Annual (MWh): The annual electricity generated from renewable energy sources including but not limited to solar photovoltaic, wind, anaerobic gas digester, fuel cells and solar thermal. Typically, a capacity factor is applied to the MW capacity to estimate the annual generation.
Target: Portfolio-level energy efficiency savings or performance targets and budgets established through Commission Orders
Total Energy Savings, Annual (MMBtu equivalent): The annual energy savings from both electric and fuel saving measures, measured in millions of British thermal units (MMBtus). This metric is equal to the sum of Electricity Savings, Annual (MWh) and Beneficial Electrification, Annual (MWh), multiplied by a MWh to MMBtu conversion factor of 3.412, plus Fuel Savings, Annual (MMBtu) and Fuel Switching, Annual (MMBtu).
Verified Gross Savings (VGS): Verified Gross Savings (VGS) is the value reported by an independent evaluator after the energy efficiency program activities and Gross Savings Analysis are complete. VGS is distinct from gross savings (GS) in two ways: 1) it is the product of a complete gross savings analysis using methods consistent with industry standard best practices, and 2) it is produced by the independent evaluator, not by the PA.

Comments & Suggestions

If you have questions about the Clean Energy Dashboard or would like to share a suggestion for improving it, please submit a comment.