CPS Energy, as part of its Strategic Energy Plan, is committed to looking at energy efficiency as a way to reduce the demand for electricity, improve the environment, reduce the need for the building of more power plants, and help our customers’ bills remain among the lowest in the country.

CPS Energy recently introduced a plan to improve our community’s energy efficiency by treating it as a new fuel source for electrical generation, or a "fifth fuel," in a mix that already includes coal, natural gas, nuclear and renewable energy. This plan attempts to decrease the rate of growth of peak electrical demand by 10 percent each year over four years, resulting in a reduction of 115 megawatts by 2011. We have committed $96 million to a number of valuable customer incentives, including commercial and residential energy-efficiency measures and a solar technology incentive program, to accomplish this goal.

As part of this initiative, CPS Energy is proactively pursuing the community's large energy users, such as school districts and businesses, to upgrade their facilities with the help of cost-effective rebates and incentives including lighting retrofits, thermal roof upgrades, and enhancements to heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems. Our residential customers also can benefit from this effort by taking advantage of a variety of rebates for appliances and home improvements that increase a home’s energy efficiency. We also are offering rebates to both commercial and residential customers for photovoltaic solar panels and other solar improvements.