2025: A Year of Change and Opportunity for Utility Incentives
2025: A Year of Change and Opportunity for Utility Incentives
2025 will be a great time for building owners to capture significant value from implementing energy saving improvements. We are convinced people will look back on 2025 and either be glad they took advantage of available programs or wish they had. EMC is tracking several trends that can impact their bottom lines for years to come. Here’s a look.
Rebates are available—but expect change.
Driven by increasing demands for energy, utilities offer a wide range of energy efficiency incentive programs that can offset the initial cost of energy saving projects by 20% or more. For more than a decade, converting fluorescent lighting to LEDs has been a top incentive offering.
With the ability to cut lighting power demand in half, LEDs also add the benefits of enhanced light quality and extended life. Now we are starting to see LED retrofit incentives phase out in conjunction with local and Federal legislation that is expected to drive the market even further towards LED standardization.
For example, rebates for conventional LED retrofits have been eliminated in Massachusetts, which previously had some of the highest incentive rates in the country. In addition, programs in Oregon and New York are likely ending later in 2025, and according to Steve Rosenstock of EEI in his presentation Impacts of New Codes, Laws, and Regulations on Your Buildings, will be gone within the next three years.
While funding still exists in many areas of the country, accessing rebate programs has never been harder. Insightful utility customers recognize the time to act is now, and applications are at an all-time high. Several programs are running out of annual budgets midyear. Faced with mounting cost and staffing constraints, many utilities have responded by transitioning to online portals, which can be more challenging to navigate than traditional applications.
As a partner to more than 200 utilities across the United States, EMC has full-time staff who are experts in identifying and securing maximum rebate opportunities for our shared customers.
Building Performance Standards Take Effect
Jurisdictions across the country are implementing local laws that set Building Performance Standards for how much energy a building can use. The ultimate objective of these Building Performance Standards is to make buildings operate more efficiently and for many building owners, the clock is ticking on a compliance deadline.
Energy Rates Continue to Rise
In Minnesota, where EMC is headquartered, the local utility’s 5.2% rate increase made front page news. The reasons cited include recovery of costs to “transition away from fossil fuels” and the “need to upgrade its power distribution system to prepare for electrification of home appliances and cars.” These cost factors are the same for other jurisdictions who face similar news across the country. Demand for electricity is increasing at record rates and meeting it will require investments that can drive higher rates. The return on energy efficiency investments will continue to increase as well.
Current Hot Offers
- ComEd (Chicago) Bonus Offer – get applications in by January 31s
- Boosts rebates levels to about 25% of project cost
- Xcel Energy MN Bonus – until 10/31/25
- Boosts rebates levels to about 25% of project cost on fixtures/kits, and to 40% of project cost on TLEDs
Kris Leaf is EMC's Senior Manager of Customer Incentives. He has developed and managed energy efficiency incentive programs for numerous utilities including Xcel Energy, ComEd and MidAmerican Energy. Kris has a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Minnesota and is pursuing a master’s degree in Sustainable Business from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
