VIRTUAL PEAKER PARTNERS WITH ENERGYUNITED TO REDUCE MEMBER ENERGY COSTS

Virtual Peaker ,the renewable energy software company, and EnergyUnited, North Carolina’s largest electric cooperative and second-largest supplier of residential electricity, have created two new programs—Beat the Peak & Peak Time Perks—to help EnergyUnited cooperative members manage their electric bills.

Beat the Peak makes it easy to save energy and money. Members are notified by text and/or email when extreme temperatures—like cold winter mornings or hot summer afternoons—are in the forecast. These “peak” energy periods create greater demand for electricity that drive up energy costs. EnergyUnited’s Beat the Peak alerts encourage members to adjust their thermostats in real time and to shift when they use large appliances, reducing the overall demand for power. This allows the cooperative to better manage costs, saving money for everyone. The program is free and voluntary for all EnergyUnited members.

EnergyUnited’s Peak Time Perks program provides incentives—an initial $50 electric bill credit, plus an additional $20 credit for each subsequent year—for members who purchase and enroll their eligible smart thermostat. By connecting the thermostats to Wi-Fi, members are rewarded for allowing EnergyUnited to remotely adjust them during peak electricity demand periods. Participating members receive text and/or email notifications when their thermostats will be automatically adjusted to balance energy savings. Members always have the option to manually change the temperature on their thermostat and opt out of any Peak Time Perks event.

“At Virtual Peaker, we help utilities like EnergyUnited make it easy for their members to save energy and money,” said William J. (Bill) Burke, the founder and CEO of Virtual Peaker. “Using the Virtual Peaker platform, together we can reduce overall costs and save energy so we can all do our part to steward a greener planet.”

“Since we started providing electricity services in the late 1930s, EnergyUnited has grown significantly, now serving almost 130,000 metering points in 19 counties, yet we’ve always remained committed to delivering reliable energy services at competitive prices,” said Thomas Golden, chief strategy officer and vice president of energy services at EnergyUnited. The Beat the Peak and Peak Time Perks programs are just the latest examples of how we strive to improve the quality of life for our co-op members.”