Wish you could look up a year’s worth of historical usage data from your utility at the click of a button? Well now you can, with a project announced today called Green Button.
Pacific Gas and Electric, Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas and Electric have collaborated with the White House Office of Science and Technology to offer Green Button as a consumer-facing tool and guide. When it goes live, Green Button will allow utility customers to log in and view up to 13 months of their detailed usage information down to one hour or 15 minute increments. All data will be downloadable in the same file format, enabling easy sharing and distribution to 3rd parties.
Pilot programs have shown that when homeowners can access this kind of data, they can cut their energy use by an average of 8.7%. The reduction in usage comes just from having a better understanding of their habits.
There’s also a huge benefit for homeowners looking into going solar. Giving homeowners simple access to usage data means they can quickly and easily relay that information to companies like SunRun during the sales process. That information essentially streamlines the designing of a new solar system, making it much easier to size a system for optimal production based on historical energy usage. Taking advantage of these important steps could make it possible for a homeowner to get solar in a matter of days instead of weeks or months.
SunRun Director of Business Development and Government Affairs Ethan Sprague spoke at a press conference today celebrating and announcing Green Button. He offers an excellent description of the benefits:
“Green Button marks an important event on the path toward making energy services as simple to use and as compelling as smart phones. To appeal to the mainstream, buying solar must become more like using Amazon or changing a cell-phone plan – fast, easy and consumer-friendly.”
“Indeed, providing consumers usable access to their consumption data is similar to allowing consumers to take their telephone number with them as they switch carriers. Like a telephone number, a person’s consumption data is unique to the customer and is fundamental to enabling providers to better serve them.”
What ideas do you have for making energy more consumer-friendly? What has been the most time-consuming process or barrier to access for you?
