Heat pumps get more affordable with special electric rates

Fall has officially arrived in the Northeast. Leaves are changing, a crisp breeze is in the air and, if they haven’t yet, millions of natural gas furnaces are getting ready to fire up.

But in Massachusetts, a small utility is encouraging its customers to flip the switch on an electric heat pump instead, Sarah Shemkus reports for the Energy News Network.

Heat pumps produce far fewer emissions than gas, oil, and other fossil-fueled heat sources, and they’re a big piece of Massachusetts’ climate plan. But the state’s high electricity prices and low natural gas prices can make it hard for some customers to justify making the switch, even with state rebates.

Gas and electric utility Unitil is trying a new electricity pricing plan to change that calculation. Since electricity demand is usually low in the winter, it doesn’t cost Unitil much to add more capacity to the grid and power heat pumps. So Unitil is sharing that lower cost with heat pump owners, and giving them a reduced electricity rate that could cut their electricity bills as much as $100 each month.

Could this approach take off across the country? Well, it’s already spreading in Massachusetts. State regulators last week ordered National Grid, which serves more than 1 million customers in the state, to devise its own low seasonal rate for heat pump owners.

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