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CHICAGO-(BUSINESS WIRE)–Electrification of transportation, buildings and industries that use fossil fuels is key to building cleaner, healthier and more sustainable communities. To advance building electrification for all communities, ComEd today announced a first-of-its-kind program to convert low-income single-family and multifamily homes to all-electric, using highly efficient technologies.
40 million dollars Whole home electrification program will enable low-income homeowners and tenants to reduce their carbon footprint, energy costs and climate impact. Illinois’ landmark Climate and Equal Employment Act (CEJA) paves the way for ComEd to offer home electrification technologies, including heat pumps, as part of a broader effort to increase adoption of technologies that can reduce air pollution from carbon emissions. This program will build on ComEd’s portfolio of energy efficiency programs that have saved Northern Illinois customers more than $7 billion on their electric bills since 2008.
“We are thrilled to launch the Whole Home Electrification Program – a first-of-its-kind effort to expand home energy efficiency programs with a focus on delivering cost and energy savings first to our low-income customers.” said Gil C Quiniones, CEO of ComEd. “As ComEd leads for more than a decade delivering billions of dollars in savings through our award-winning energy efficiency program, the launch of our Whole Home Electrification Program represents the next frontier in our work together with state, regional and local partners to help our customers achieve a cleaner and more sustainable future in that our communities, which are most vulnerable to pollution, are not left behind.”
ComEd began work on a whole-home electrification program earlier this year in partnership with local climate justice nonprofit Elevate. Through this collaboration, ComEd, Elevate and local contractors will deliver comprehensive appliance and air conditioning upgrades, building climate changes, and health and safety modifications needed to safely and effectively reduce reliance on fossil fuel energy sources, such as gas and propane, for homeowners and residents in 100 single and apartment buildings in Chicago.
As one of several partners, Elevate and ComEd will use the program to better understand cost and energy savings, and to inform a home decarbonization model that can be replicated to serve more customers outside of Chicago, including those in areas with an older housing stock. which usually costs more to heat.
“Electrification is more than just an opportunity to save carbon – it leads to healthier, safer and more comfortable homes,” said Ann Evens, CEO of Elevate. “It is imperative to make these benefits available to the communities that need them most.” We are excited to continue working with ComEd to increase the reach of this program.”
Through the Whole Home Electrification Program, low-income customers will receive a number of free upgrades to help reduce energy consumption and overall energy costs. After a home technical assessment by ComEd’s Energy Efficiency Service Provider (EESP), buyers will receive ENERGY STAR qualified upgrades that may include: heat pumps, heat pump water heaters, induction or electric furnaces, and electric or heat pump clothes dryers.
As part of the program, ComEd will finance 100 percent of eligible electrification upgrades for single-family homes and up to 70 percent for eligible multi-unit buildings, with the remaining costs paid by building owners at no cost to tenants. Buyers can also receive free weather protection and health and safety improvements that may be needed to effectively and safely reduce the home’s reliance on fossil fuel use.
“The Chicago Bungalow Association (CBA) is proud to partner with ComEd and Elevate to bring the benefits of home electrification to low-income communities throughout Chicago,” said Mary Ellen Guest, executive director of the Chicago Bungalow Association. “We know that older homeowners on the south and west sides, often communities of color, face higher energy burdens and are at greater risk of poor air quality.” Through ComEd’s investments in the Whole Home Electrification Program, we aim to reach more people with more efficient home appliances and systems that can reduce energy costs, improve home comfort and safety, and contribute to lower emissions for their surrounding communities.”
To identify candidates for the program, ComEd and its partners, which include Elevate Energi, Resource Innovations, Franklin Energy and BlocPower, take a hyper-targeted approach to ensure that the upgrades will result in overall savings on the customer’s energy bill and that the home or building can accommodate electrification upgrades.
“Resource Innovations is excited to support ComEd’s new whole-home electrification program for residential customers who currently rely on fossil fuels for their heating needs,” said Scott Yee, director of resource innovation. “By connecting ComEd customers with trained contractors who can help determine whether a whole-home electrification upgrade is right for the household, we help make a difference in our communities and their overall environmental impact.”
A recent report from the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) found that low-income consumers who participate in home electrification can save up to $1,445 per year on energy costs, although actual savings will vary by consumer. Switching earlier could help maximize savings, thanks to the availability of heat pump incentives and rebates, as well as other electrification and energy efficiency measures under the Inflation Reduction Act.
“As Illinois upgrades and electrifies our buildings, we must ensure that people with limited incomes have access to those electrification improvements at little or no cost.” This is essential to ensure equitable access to affordable energy,” said Valeria Rincon, Midwest Building Decarbonization Advocate at NRDC. “Using efficient, clean, electrical appliances offers a tremendous opportunity for energy and cost savings for Chicagoans, especially those most energy-burdened.”
Beyond savings, customers who electrify their homes can benefit from improved indoor air quality and overall community health. Not only have electric appliances been demonstrated to deliver heat and air conditioning to maintain comfortable home temperatures year-round, but they can help address indoor air quality issues while significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions that impact the surrounding community.
In addition to building electrification, ComEd has helped lead efforts to advance transportation electrification in the region, including collaborating with regional partners on infrastructure planning, conducting research to prepare the grid for the increase in electric vehicles (EVs), and offering resources to customers and communities to help electrify rolling stock. park as well as personal purchases of electric vehicles. For more information on ComEd’s efforts to help with EV planning, visit the EV Toolkit.
About the electrification of buildings
Electrification refers to replacing technologies that use fossil fuels (for example, gasoline, natural gas, or propane) with technologies that use electricity powered by decarbonized energy sources, reducing carbon emissions. Electrification of buildings involves converting fossil fuel technologies used in homes and businesses with highly efficient electrical alternatives, such as heat pumps. Heat pumps can offer an efficient year-round electric heating and cooling system for cooling and heating homes.
The Biden administration recently invoked the Defense Production Act to spur production of more efficient heat pumps and insulation, which will play a role in reducing carbon pollution from homes and commercial buildings, which currently account for 13 percent of U.S. climate pollution, according to the U.S. EPA. Modern heat pump technologies are proven to work in the coldest climates, even when temperatures drop below zero degrees. They can significantly reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions, all while saving homeowners on their energy bills.
ComEd is a unit of Chicago-based Echelon Corporation (NASDAQ: EKSC ), a Fortune 200 energy company with approximately 10 million electricity and natural gas customers – the largest number of customers in the U.S. ComEd powers the lives of more than 4 million customers across northern Illinois, or 70 percent of the country’s population. For more information, visit ComEd.com and connect with the company on Facebook, TwitterInstagram and YouTube.
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