Atco Signs Up to Help Ease Draw on NY Power Grid

By GreenerBuildings Staff
Published August 12, 2008

Energy Use

;

Facility Management

;

Your Email: *

Your Name: *

Send To: *
Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.

You are going to email the following: Atco Signs Up to Help Ease Draw on NY Power Grid

Message Subject: (Your Name) has forwarded a page to you from GreenBiz.com®

Message Body: (Your Name) thought you would like to see this page from GreenBiz.com®.

Your Personal Message: *

New York, N.Y. -- Atco Properties & Management has enrolled several of its commercial buildings in the PowerPay New York demand response energy conservation program that's aimed at reducing blackouts and brownouts in New York State.

Atco owns and manages more than 2 million square feet of residential, commercial, industrial and retail space nationwide, and its primary holdings are in New York City.

Under the PowerPay program, which is administered by Energy Curtailment Specialists, Inc. (ECS), Atco will be paid for easing up on the use of electricity at some of its New York commercial properties during energy emergencies.

Neither Atco nor ECS would disclose the amount of Atco holdings enrolled in the program, the company's kilowatt commitment or its rate of compensation for decreasing lighting, pre-cooling A/C and shutting down non-essential equipment when the grid is forecast as being unstable.

In announcing the arrangement, which began about two weeks ago, ECS said Atco's commitment is "considered a capacity resource, which comes with a significant payment."

"We are pleased that Atco Properties, a leader in their industry, has taken the initiative to enroll in the program," said Glen Smith, cofounder, president and chief executive officer of ECS.

"We are excited about the future of demand response and the impact it has on the environment and our community," said Avi Itzikowitz, director of operations for Atco Properties & Management.

All participants in the program must be able to commit to at least a 25 kilowatts of reduction when stress on the grid reaches emergency levels, said ECS spokeswoman Tracey Penner. One kilowatt would power the average home. Compensation to program participants is on a sliding scale based largely on a participant's enrolled commitment.