by MTI Energy Management / Lighting Specialists, Inc.

Michigan utilities are entering into the last year of a three year utility rebate program that offers rebates to commercial customers that make energy efficient improvements to their buildings.

Be aware that the response to this program has been overwhelming. DTE exhausted 2010 funding for the program in May of this year. New applications were placed on a waiting list with no guarantee of receiving rebates. DTE will begin taking new applications sometime in October 2010 for the last year of the program which is set to end in 2011.  Response will surely be high. Rebate applications will be processed on a first come first served basis.

To verify eligibility a qualified Michigan contractor should be consulted before making changes. Do it yourself improvements may not qualify for rebate under the program. Check with a contractor or your utility representative before moving ahead.

July 19, 2010

As the recession is coming to an apparent end, the utility industry is beginning to realign. While a number of deals are transpiring, they are less indicative of a broader trend and more about companies building their competitive future positions.

Energy demand will continue to lag its prerecession levels. So, many companies are faced with the choice of hanging on to assets that are not fully productive or selling plants to those who view them as part of their wider expansion plans. Others, meanwhile, are merging so as to gain size, scale and diversity.

July 16, 2010

Coal's future may not be as cloudy as some would think. It still ranks as the number one energy source for electric generators while 38 states here import the fuel from either other states or other nations.

Utilities are under lots of pressure to reduce their emissions regulated under the Clean Air Act. That movement alone would cause companies to shy away from coal and toward other, less polluting sources. But those same enterprises are trying to install new technologies that would lessen their releases. As such, the majority of the states that import coal from elsewhere may stay the course for a while.

July 14, 2010

To the ongoing conversation on how consumers behave, what they think and how to engage them, let's add a new Accenture study.

In January, Accenture surveyed consumers in 17 countries, including the United States, seven European nations, China, Japan and South Korea on residential energy management attitudes, knowledge and practices.

"We wanted to step back from the smart grid and its technologies and survey customers and consumers on barriers to changing behavior around energy usage, because -- especially in North America -- utilities are responding to pressures from various stakeholders to reduce use," says Greg Guthridge, managing director for Accenture's retail and business services for utilities.

July 09, 2010

Tougher air regulations that hover over the utility market place are pitting the fossil fuels against one another. Environmental disasters are furthermore compounding the issue and forcing coal and natural gas to square off.

The battle has begun: The natural gas industry is saying that new exploratory technologies are allowing non-traditional forms to be discovered safely -- at levels that increase the supplies for decades to come. Coal representatives are responding that coal still provides twice the electricity of other fuels and that it will remain comparatively inexpensive -- and become much cleaner.