Then: When Fresh Energy was founded energy conservation was sort of a folksy thing that people taught their kids—close the refrigerator door, turn off the lights when you leave the room, turn on a fan instead of the air conditioner. One of policies Fresh Energy passed required efficient lights in exit signs throughout the state.
Now: Minnesota is a leader on energy efficiency thanks to the energy savings and spending requirements included in the nation-leading 2007 Next Generation Energy Act. Fresh Energy and its partners have also helped shape new, more innovative rate designs at the Public Utilities Commission that hold fixed monthly fees down and allow customers to save money by conserving energy.
Next: As the grid continues to get cleaner and cleaner, Fresh Energy’s efficiency work is shifting from focusing purely on energy savings and more on energy performance. We’re working to create more transparency about how much energy costs at different times of the day and let customers adapt to those prices—driving more demand for low-cost renewables and shifting more of our economy into the electric sector simultaneously.
