Minnesota's ETA reports on market readiness and savings calculations for efficiency advancements
February 19, 2024, Minneapolis — Minnesota's Efficient Technology Accelerator has released nine foundational plans and reports that will help define and set a course for strategic efforts in coming years. The documents also provide instructive insights for a variety of energy field professionals and stakeholders across the U.S.
Minnesota’s Efficient Technology Accelerator (ETA) is a statewide market transformation program designed to accelerate deployment and reduce the cost of emerging and innovative efficient technologies, ultimately reducing energy bills while improving environmental benefits. Funded by the state’s largest investor-owned energy utilities, the collaboration is administered by the Minnesota Department of Commerce Division of Energy Resources and implemented by Center for Energy and Environment.
Aligned with three promising energy efficiency technologies, the new plans and reports cover three distinct channels of information:
Market Characterization Reports use both primary and secondary market insight research to explore current market dynamics and key opportunities and barriers to widespread adoption. The market characterizations build on existing market intelligence in Minnesota and elsewhere to explore the status of technology-specific product markets to better understand barriers, opportunities, and leverage points for goal-focused market interventions.
Market Transformation Plans, informed by the market characterization and extensive planning processes, describe each initiative’s approach for increasing product adoption. These bedrock plans summarize key contextual information, refine the initiative product scope, lay out the basic program logic and goals that inform our market strategies, and present the fundamental market support activities needed for success with each technology.
Energy Savings and Market Evaluation Plans detail the evaluative metrics and calculations behind ETA's savings goals and strategies outlined in the Market Transformation Plans. Savings methodologies of market transformation tend to be more complex than is typically the case for utility rebate programs, and since energy savings are generally small during market growth, additional metrics are used to evaluate market progress. Thoughtful evaluation plans help define the potential effectiveness of various approaches through the informed estimation of energy savings and market progress.
“By design, these fundamental pieces work together and complement each other,” explained Carl Nelson, CEE’s senior director of Market Transformation. “With Market Transformation Plans serving as each initiative’s north star, the plans and reports collectively outline our current market state, how we plan to serve and transform it, and how we will evaluate our progress over time.
A quick rundown by technology:
Air Source Heat Pumps
MARKET CHARACTERIZATION REPORT
ENERGY SAVINGS AND MARKET EVALUATION PLAN
Luminaire-Level Lighting Controls
MARKET CHARACTERIZATION REPORT
ENERGY SAVINGS AND MARKET EVALUATION PLAN
High-Performance Windows
MARKET CHARACTERIZATION REPORT
ENERGY SAVINGS AND MARKET EVALUATION PLAN
Note: ETA is currently developing a parallel set of plans and reports about high-performance rooftop units, a fourth initiative in its portfolio of energy efficiency technologies.
Visit etamn.org to read the full documents and to learn more about Minnesota’s collaborative, statewide Efficient Technology Accelerator. And for the latest updates, industry insights about promising efficiency technologies, and ongoing opportunities to partner with ETA, join our mailing list at bit.ly/etamn-signup.
About Minnesota's ETA
Minnesota's Efficient Technology Accelerator is a statewide market transformation program that accelerates deployment and reduces the cost of emerging and innovative efficient technologies, bringing lower energy bills and environmental benefits to Minnesotans. ETA regularly vets the most promising technologies, making it easier for others to reach their business goals while informing the field with tech-specific research and reporting. ETA is administered by the Minnesota Department of Commerce, Division of Energy Resources; funded by Minnesota's largest gas and electric utilities; and delivered by nonprofit Center for Energy and Environment.
Media contact
Tim Hanrahan, 612-244-2419, thanrahan@mncee.org