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Peak Time Payback

Earn bill credits for reducing your electricity use when the demand is high.

  • Earn bill credits for conserving electricity during specified peak times
  • Help the co-op reduce our collective peak energy costs
  • No cost to participate

Peak Time Payback (PTP) rewards you with bill credits for conserving electricity during specified periods of time when we forecast the need for electricity will be higher than usual.

Electricity is more expensive when the demand is high. If we can reduce the amount of peak time electricity we need to buy from wholesale power suppliers, we can pass those savings on to our members who voluntarily reduce their usage during those times.

Enrollment is voluntary and open to all residential and commercial members who are willing to reduce their electricity usage during these times of forecasted high demand. There’s no cost or risk to participate, and there is no penalty for not reducing your usage.

 
Enroll today

How to manage notifications in SmartHub

Here's how it works

  • First step: fill out the simple enrollment form below.
  • Next step: sign up to receive email and/or text message notifications in Smarthub.
  • Here’s a step-by-step guide to activating PTP Event notifications.
  • You must be enrolled in email or text notifications in SmartHub to participate in Peak Time Payback.
  • If you have trouble with this enrollment, please call 970-945-5491 and one of our Member Service Representatives can help you.
  • Once you’ve enrolled in the program, you will receive an alert via email or text message informing you about an upcoming time when you can save. Alerts are typically sent a day in advance.
  • Typically, these are two to three hour blocks on weekdays between the hours of 4:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. 
  • During the time period specified in the alert, reduce your electric usage however you’d like.
  • A great place to start is by changing some power habits, like delaying the use of your dishwasher, washer or dryer, or adjusting your thermostat.
  • We calculate a baseline from your electric usage during recent similar days.
  • If you reduced your energy use during the specified timeframe compared to your baseline, you will get rewarded with a bill credit on your next bill:
    • High Event Payback: $0.75 per kWH reduced compared to your baseline.
    • Critical Event Payback: $1.50 per kWH reduced compared to your baseline.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Peak Time Payback rewards members for reducing electricity use for a couple of hours when the cost of that electricity is at its most expensive price for us to purchase for our members’ use.
  • Electricity is more expensive when the demand is high, and for us, that means relying on and paying wholesalers to provide us with that extra electricity needed to meet demand.
  • This is because, on high-usage days and times, we need more power to support our system.
  • We are using Peak Time Payback to reduce the amount of electricity we have to buy from wholesalers when the cost is high by asking members to voluntarily reduce their usage
    during times of high demand.
  • In other words, we would rather pay you, our members, for conserving energy, instead of paying a wholesaler to provide more energy.
  • We will notify you about a future block of time (typically two to three hours) when we forecast the need for electricity will be higher than usual.
  • Therefore, we will request our members reduce their usage during that time period.
  • Most of these time blocks will occur between the hours of 4 p.m. and 9 p.m.
  • Nothing! There is no penalty if you can’t reduce your electricity use during the timeframe called out in the alert.
  • You can choose when to participate. If you do not participate on one day, you can still participate on other days. 
  • Consistent participation by members, however, is very helpful to us in balancing our power system!
  • The price you pay for electricity will never change as a result of participating in the program.
  • We calculate a baseline from your electric use during recent similar days. We have two types of alerts, Critical and High.
  • During Critical alerts, you could earn $1.50 for each kilowatt-hour (kWh) you reduce compared with your baseline.
  • For High alerts, it’s $0.75 for each kWh. 
  • In a calendar year, we’re anticipating no more than 96 total PTP hours.
  • Critical alerts are when we expect the demand for electricity to be very high, which is why these are worth $1.50 for each kWh you can reduce.
  • High alerts are when it’s highly likely that the demand for electricity will be high, and therefore, are worth $.75 for each kWh you can reduce. 
  • Enrolling in the program is just the first step towards participating in the program.
  • To begin receiving Peak Time Payback alerts, you will need to log in to your SmartHub account and update your notifications.
  • Our power supply analysts created an algorithm that determines your expected electricity usage at the time of predicted high demand (based on your historical usage patterns).
  • This algorithm gives us a baseline value, which represents an estimate of what you would have used in each hour during that time.
  • If you reduce your electricity use below that expected baseline, you will earn credit.
    • If on a weekday, the baseline is calculated by taking the average of the previous ten days during the defined event hours.
    • On weekends, it’s the average of the previous two weekend days during the defined event hours.
  • Peak Time Payback alerts can be called in any month of the year. The number of times in a month varies. Some months we might send several alerts, while others we may call none.
  • There could be alerts called on back-to-back days. If you aren’t able to reduce two days in a row, try to reduce during the Critical alert and earn more money!
  • Typically, these time periods will occur on weekdays (but weekends and holidays are possible, too), between the hours of 4 p.m. and 9 p.m.
  • We anticipate no more than 96 Peak Time Payback hours to be issued in a calendar year; however, depending on weather and systemwide electricity use, that number could vary.
  • Typically, we will send you a PTP alert the day before the specified timeframe when you can save. Depending on how you set up your notifications in SmartHub, you’ll either receive an alert via email, text message, or both.
  • No! This program has nothing to do with power outages.
  • The purpose of the program is to help us reduce our Co-op’s energy usage as a whole and therefore reduce the amount of energy that is purchased during high-usage hours.
Questions? Please contact us for more details!
Contact Us

How to enroll and signup for alerts

  1. Complete the online enrollment form below.
  2. Activate your text and/or email notifications in Smarthub. Here’s how >
  3. You must be enrolled in email and/or text notifications to participate in Peak Time Payback.
  4. If you have trouble with this enrollment, please call 970-945-5491 and one of our Member Service Representatives will be happy to help you.

How to sign up for Peak Time Payback notifications

  • To set up a SmartHub account, you’ll need the following info:

    • Your Billing Account Number
    • Member’s Last Name (or Business Name)
    • A working email address

    If you are already registered for SmartHub, you may skip this step.

  1. Log in to SmartHub.

  2. Click the “Settings” tab.
  3. Click on “Contact Methods”
  4. By default, the SmartHub registration email (you used to login) is added as an available contact. You may add additional emails and/or phone numbers to deliver PTP notifications to other people at your discretion.
  5. If not adding a new email or phone contact, proceed to Step 4.

 

  1. When adding a new contact email or phone, a confirmation code will be delivered via email or text message and must be entered to validate the contact information.
  2. Click “Save” when complete.
  3. Contacts must be verified before proceeding to the next step.

To add a verified contact to your notifications:

  1. Click the “Settings” tab

  2. Click on “Manage Notifications”

  3. Open the “Reports” menu

  4. For the Alert Type Peak Time Payback Notification, open the drop-down menu for Text Message
    and/or Email and choose the contact you wish to receive the notifications. You can choose multiple contacts
    to receive the notification.

  5. Click “Save”

(It is possible multiple accounts exist for your SmartHub registration. In this case you should open the drop-down to scroll and search for the specific account number)

To take full advantage of the program and earn the biggest savings, remember to adjust things like thermostats and hot tub temperatures, reschedule things like laundry and dishwashing, and turn off things like heat tape.