Knowledge Center
We believe that sharing our expertise and collaborations in clean energy policy is how real, effective change happens.
From reports and policy briefs, to webinars and podcasts—RAP advisors have built an extensive collection of resources providing in-depth analysis and practical solutions to today’s energy challenges.
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Utilities face unprecedented changes in the way power is generated and delivered. With the ramp-up in distributed generation, energy efficiency and demand response, electric vehicles, smart appliances, and more, the industry must rethink its rate structures to accommodate and encourage… View Summary +
The electric utility industry is facing a number of radical changes, including customer-sited generation and advanced metering infrastructure, which will both demand and allow a more sophisticated method of designing the rates charged to customers. In this environment, traditional rate… View Summary +
The advent of smart meters and the additional data they provide means that utilities can consider expanding the use of demand charges to residential customers. However, great caution should be applied when considering this option, as severe cost shifts may… View Summary +
Building on the first webinar of the series “Fundamentals of Rate Design,” Jim Lazar and Janine Migden-Ostrander introduced the finer points of cost allocation and dynamic pricing, as well as net metering and alternatives. Because cost allocation is an inexact… View Summary +
Many state net-metering laws allow consumers installing rooftop solar arrays to incur net-bills for zero or very few kilowatt-hours, depending on the geographic location and the design of the net-metering tariff. To improve revenue stability and collect distribution system costs… View Summary +
Rate design for electric utility customers is an arcane topic that matters a lot, and there is simply no one-size-fits-all approach. However, all effective rate designs reflect the costs incurred to provide reliable service throughout the year. As the first… View Summary +
As installed solar photovoltaic grows at unprecedented rates, the role of the electricity consumer is fundamentally changing. Customers are transitioning from being passive recipients of utility services to being active participants in both providing and receiving grid services. Distributed generation… View Summary +
This paper encapsulates work derived from workshops in Europe in 2012 on setting future tariffs for distribution system operators (DSOs), particularly when it comes to incentivizing smart grid, distributed generation, and demand response. It also serves as a foundation document… View Summary +
Renewable energy in the US is becoming a different animal altogether. The “duck” curve illustrates the load shape some grid operators expect to contend with as increasing levels of wind and solar resources create ramping challenges for conventional generation. The… View Summary +
Jim Lazar takes aim at the widely circulated “duck curve” in this webinar, which highlights 10 low carbon strategies for “teaching the duck to fly.” Mr. Lazar utilizes existing technologies to address the load shape of emerging utility requirements as… View Summary +
Jim Lazar takes aim at the widely circulated “duck curve” in this brief policy paper, which highlights 10 low carbon strategies for “teaching the duck to fly.” Mr. Lazar utilizes existing technologies to address the load shape of emerging utility… View Summary +
Energy efficiency is recognized as a low-cost, reliable resource, yet investments in efficiency programs lag far behind the level needed to capture all cost-effective efficiency resources. State utility commissions can support increased efficiency investments by conducting a full valuation of… View Summary +
Energy efficiency provides numerous benefits to utilities, to participants (including rate payers), and to society as a whole. However, many of these benefits are frequently undervalued or not valued at all when energy efficiency measures are assessed. This paper seeks… View Summary +
Drawing on his recent paper, “Rate Design Where Advanced Metering Infrastructure Has Not Been Fully Deployed”, RAP senior advisor Jim Lazar highlighted five universal pricing principles in a 60-minute RAP webinar on September 5th. He emphasized that prices ideally should… View Summary +
This paper identifies sound practices in rate design applied around the globe using conventional metering technology. Rate design for most residential and small commercial customers (mass market consumers) is most often reflected in a simple monthly access charge and a… View Summary +