Knowledge is (Less) Power | Smart Meter must read

A important read on what is required to make utilizing smart meters intelligent for consumers.

The Energy Institute at Haas (University of California Berkeley Haas School of Business) is, in my opinion, home to the most intelligent commentary on economics in electricity markets.

Knowledge is (Less) Power. | Energy Economics Exchange:

Information is power. We know from a number of Opower type studies that shaming reduces consumption slightly. Matt Kahn told us that liberals can be shamed into conservation more easily than conservatives. From a policy perspective this is of limited use as we neither could nor should assign political preferences in the name of energy conservation. What we can do however, is provide people with real time consumption data. That fancy PG&E smart meter in the back of my home should be unlocked so I can have an app on my phone tell me in real time how much electricity and gas my house is using. The cost of that app would be lower than the $40 in home display and have a payback period of weeks or months rather than the 7 years of the display.

Please Read the entire article at Energy Economics Exchange

The study referenced in the post is Knowledge is (Less) Power: Experimental Evidence from Residential Energy Use

Whose Meter Is It: Dopey Ontario and Smart Meters is a recent entry I wrote on my original content blog