The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) recently posted an electricity data browser to show generation, consumption, fossil fuel receipts, stockpiles, retail sales, and electricity prices. The data appear on an interactive website and are updated each month. The Electricity Data Browser includes all the datasets collected and published in EIA’s Electric Power Monthly and allows users to perform dynamic charting of data sets as well as map the data by state. The data browser allows readers to drill down to plant level statistics, where available. The data browser was first made available on EIA’s beta website in 2012. After improvements based on user feedback and the addition of more data, the browser was moved to the live site with the publication of November 2012 data.
Schneider Electric launched an Efficiency Quotient online questionnaire that provides customers with an energy management assessment, including cross-user comparisons and recommended steps for reducing energy costs and improving efficiency. Upon completing the survey, customers receive a rating of 1 to 5 compared to other like-users, including building managers, data centers, industrial plants and energy managers. Based on this score, Schneider Electric provides customers with recommendations and access to related white papers, as well as specific links and tools to help guide the energy efficiency improvement process.
The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) is releasing a calculator that lets users get an idea of the costs and air quality benefits of some basic energy efficiency policies and allows them to compare those options with more piecemeal approaches to reducing air pollution. According to the ACEEE, over the next decade, a host of federal air regulations will impose restrictions on the emissions of multiple pollutants from stationary sources such as industrial facilities. These air regulations create a demand for low-cost and rapidly deployable emissions reduction measures, and energy efficiency proves to be the least-cost resource.
