Picture this: It’s a cold January morning in 2050. People across New England are waking up and cranking their electric heat pumps. They’re also turning on lights, brewing coffee and taking hot showers, all while the millions of electric vehicles in the region are finishing up their overnight charge.
But experts say that if we can shift when some appliances draw power from the grid, the region might be able to get away with building slightly less infrastructure.from the U.S. Department of Energy, a pilot program in Massachusetts will test whether installing small batteries and heat pumps in about 2,000 homes could be a cost-effective way to help do just that.
"One of the things that I think is particularly exciting about this pilot is the pairing of building electrification measures with energy storage," said Brett Webster, a manager in the Carbon-Free Buildings program at RMI, a research group that advocates for clean energy. "Pilots like this are critical because they help inform what the road map looks like, which, to be honest, no one has totally figured out," he said.
“It’s a win for everyone,” said Tilak Subrahmanian, vice president of energy efficiency at Eversource, which helps run Mass Save. “It’s accelerating building decarbonization for low- and moderate-income customers while mitigating the impacts on the grid.” In terms of individual energy savings, the results remain to be seen. In New England, electricity tends to cost more than natural gas, meaning customers who make the switch from a gas furnace to an electric heat pump may see higher utility bills. Subrahmanian said the way the program is structured, people won’t pay more for energy, but any savings may be minimal. At least for now.