Detroit’s DTE Energy estimates its customers will save a cumulative $626 million on their energy bills over a lifetime due to their participation in DTE programs in 2018.
The energy efficiency milestone is detailed in DTE’s newly released Energy Waste Reduction Report, which outlines the role DTE’s customers play in energy efficiency.
“When homes and businesses reduce their energy use, we can generate less energy, which can reap benefits for our customers’ budgets and the environment,” says John Boladian, director of energy efficiency at DTE Energy. “Since 2009, DTE’s energy efficiency savings program has saved the energy equivalent needed to power a city the size of Ann Arbor with natural gas for two years and electricity for 10 years.”
Michigan businesses can reduce operating costs through steps such as switching to LED lights and installing energy-efficient appliances. DTE’s energy efficiency team seeks new technologies to help customers reduce usage and monthly bills.
The free DTE Insight app allows customers to monitor real-time energy use from smart devices. It recently added features that use smart home connected devices including voice integration through Amazon Alexa, smart lightbulbs, and smart thermostats.
In 2018, DTE conducted 24,000 free Home Energy Consultations, and more than 590,000 free energy-saving products, such as thermostats and LED lights, were installed in homes. About 30,000 inefficient appliances were recycled, and 200,000 LED lights were distributed to nearly 10,000 low-income customers in partnership with local food banks.
The utility also conducted 2,600 free Business Energy Consultations, and more than 97,000 free energy-saving products were installed at business locations. About 17,000 business energy efficiency projects were completed using DTE incentives to help customers invest and save on HVAC, lighting upgrades, and more.
DTE has committed to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050 and is expanding energy-efficiency programs for customers to reduce consumption to help with the initiative.
For tips on ways to save, residential customers can click here, and business customers can click here. Homeowners with smart meters can download the DTE Insight app in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store. The full report is available here.
DTE’s electric company serves 2.2 million customers in southeast Michigan and 1.3 million natural gas customers in Michigan. Its portfolio includes energy businesses focused on power and industrial projects, renewable natural gas, natural gas pipelines, gathering and storage, and energy marketing and trading. The company plans to reduce carbon dioxide and methane emissions by more than 80 percent by 2040.
