Recent Whitepapers

Market Segment Characterization for Heat Pump Electrification

Mon, 02 Mar 2026 19:50:00 GMT

A significant share of industrial energy use and carbon emissions are from low- and medium-temperature process heat. An efficient pathway to decarbonize these processes is through industrial heat pumps (IHPs). Current IHPs can deliver low-temperature process heat that can cover approximately 44% of the US industrial process heat demand. Emerging higher-temperature IHP designs could address up to 55% of demand. This research examines real-world examples of IHP, which suggest that characterizing successful niche implementations, identifying local barriers, and implementing mitigation measures can all help accelerate IHP deployment and build market confidence. Increasing IHP deployment also reduces overall energy use and operational costs, while lowering greenhouse gas emissions. In Vermont, the benefits of IHPs are particularly relevant for food processing, the beverage industry, lumber, and wastewater sectors. By mapping commercially available technologies to these sectors, this whitepaper provides practical examples of how industrial heat pumps can reduce energy consumption, improve product quality, and support climate goals.

This research suggests that achieving the full impact of IHPs requires coordinated and strategic action that considers barriers such as high energy prices, the up-front costs of IHP systems, the state’s limited workforce expertise with this technology, and the complexity associated with integrating IHPs into existing industrial processes. This research further suggests that utilities and policymakers can support IHP adoption and market transformation through flexible electricity tariff schemes and by enabling demand response programs. This research also finds that incentives, improved marketing (based on successful demonstration projects targeting niche customer segments), and workforce education are critical to scaling IHP adoption. By aligning technical innovation with economic and policy frameworks, Vermont can lead in industrial decarbonization and electrification through IHPs.

Energy Resilience: Estimating Loss Economics

Mon, 02 Mar 2026 17:00:00 GMT

Following devastating summer floods in 2023 and 2024, the State of Vermont initiated a Resilience Implementation Strategy to support the state’s capacity to “anticipate, respond, adapt, and thrive in the face of current and future conditions and disasters.” One component of this strategy focused on energy delivery and infrastructure adaptation. Separately, Efficiency Vermont’s 2024 Energy Resilience Planning Framework supported another component of the strategy by examining the economic and environmental sustainability of recovery. Building on this work, and using interviews, surveys, and rebate records from the 2023-2024 flooding in Vermont, this whitepaper found consistent patterns of losses and costs across sectors that can be categorized as tangible (e.g., building systems, appliances, structural components) and intangible (e.g., income, labor diversion, personal time). Municipalities were found to have incurred costs in three stages (active event, immediate aftermath, and long-term recovery). Commercial losses clustered around infrastructure and business operations, while residential respondents reported losses related to both personal belongings and building structures, with heating systems and appliances representing the highest repair and replacement costs. Post-disaster price inflation and contractor shortages amplified recovery expenses.

In assessing resilience and recovery, this research identified five tangible and three intangible categories of loss typologies (providing a framework for planners to anticipate economic impacts and integrate them into resilience strategies). This research also provided cost benchmarks for these losses, with heating systems found to be the most expensive to replace, followed by structural repairs and appliances. Also identified are labor costs, which can impose hidden economic burdens, and community dynamics (such as volunteer labor) that can support accelerated recovery but also introduce uncertainties for planners. Finally, this whitepaper identified policy gaps to consider, namely, slow and insufficient FEMA buyouts (underscoring the need for proactive resilience investments and short-term housing strategies). The implications of these findings for energy resilience planning can enable planners to better quantify potential losses, improve cost-benefit analyses, and prioritize investments. These findings can serve as a foundation for broader disaster recovery efforts beyond Vermont.

Closing the Loop: Lifecycle Refrigerant Management for Vermont’s Residential Heat Pumps

Sun, 01 Mar 2026 17:00:00 GMT

Refrigerant management in residential heat pumps is an often-overlooked climate risk. Although these systems make up only a small share of Vermont’s total refrigerant inventory, the roughly 80,000 heat pumps installed statewide (as of 2025) contain refrigerant gases with a high global warming potential (GWP). These gases could become potent drivers of climate change if mismanaged. While the transition to lower GWP refrigerants is underway for new equipment, this does not address the climate liability locked into the heat pumps already installed across Vermont.

Efficiency Vermont undertook research focusing on two stages of the heat pump lifecycle with the highest climate risk: operational leaks, which often remain unnoticed until performance declines, and end-of-life venting, which is illegal yet still common when equipment is removed without proper refrigerant recovery. With Vermont’s earliest heat pump installations nearing retirement, the state could face increased venting without strategic intervention.

This whitepaper emphasizes that nothing should slow heating electrification, and that heat pumps provide substantial greenhouse gas benefits. Refrigerant management strengthens those benefits. The research also highlights the need for consumer education, as many households underuse their heat pumps, thereby reducing fossil fuel displacement. When low utilization overlaps with refrigerant leaks, climate gains can erode.

In addition to its climate benefits, strong refrigerant management also supports affordability, comfort, and grid stability. Centering HVAC contractors as key partners and drawing on interviews, survey data, and a literature review, this paper identifies strategies to reduce barriers, align incentives, improve outcomes, and support best practices for refrigerant management across Vermont’s growing heat pump market.

Increasing Access to Energy Efficiency: Piloting community engagement & program adaptation initiatives

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 17:00:00 GMT

Improving access to energy efficiency programs is essential to achieving Vermont’s broader energy and climate goals. When all Vermonters can access the tools and resources they need to reduce energy use, the entire state benefits—from lower utility costs and reduced emissions to healthier homes and stronger communities. However, it's widely recognized that many people struggle to access efficiency programs. Efficiency Vermont aimed to improve the accessibility of energy efficiency programs through two key pathways during its 2024-2026 performance period. First, through increased resource acquisition (RA) support for equity programs, services, and incentives. Second, through a new development and support service (DSS) Equity initiative focused on engaging with customers and partners to gather feedback on, and inform the design of, programs and services. Alongside additional state support, Efficiency Vermont made significant progress in overcoming long-standing barriers that have limited participation from underserved and hard-to-reach communities. This Interim DSS Equity Report collects the many ways Efficiency Vermont was able to identify and address persistent barriers that have historically excluded many Vermonters from participating in energy-saving programs. Beyond financial incentives, this included building meaningful relationships with trusted community partners, listening deeply to the lived experiences of underserved customers, and using those insights to reshape programs in ways that are more responsive, flexible, and culturally relevant. These lessons are already being implemented to improve outreach and adapt programs to better meet the needs of renters, rural residents, and other hard-to-reach groups. They'll also serve as a foundation for continued progress—in the 2027-2029 performance period, and beyond—by centering these lessons learned as core principles of energy efficiency planning and delivery.

2025 Vermont Heat Pump Action Plan

Mon, 06 Oct 2025 13:28:00 GMT

The Vermont Residential Heat Pump Action Plan is driven by a central goal: to significantly reduce household greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across the state. This plan outlines a strategic approach to achieving that goal by increasing the adoption of heat pump technologies and optimizing their usage in Vermont's residential sector, while ensuring affordability for all residents.

Building on the findings of the 2024 Vermont Heat Pump Market Assessment, which evaluated the current status, challenges, and opportunities for heat pump use in space and water heating, this action plan focuses specifically on space heating, identifies key market barriers, and proposes targeted strategies to overcome them.

Furthermore, the action plan proposes a comprehensive approach that includes enhanced end-use customer education, financial incentives, technological innovation, contractor training, and regulatory support.

On the Way to Viability: Residential Bidirectional Charging

Fri, 27 Jun 2025 18:41:00 GMT

Bidirectional charging, also called Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X), allows the two-way flow of energy to charge an electric vehicle’s battery and to discharge energy to an external load, including individual appliances (Vehicle-to-Load, or V2L), entire homes (Vehicle-to-Home, or V2H), or the grid (Vehicle-to-Grid, or V2G). This whitepaper explores the viability and economics of residential V2X applications, focusing on the emerging areas of V2H and V2G technologies and introducing potential resilience benefits along with economic ones. The research found that costs remain a significant barrier to many V2X applications (both in acquiring a commercially available system and other potential site-specific costs like electric service and electrical panel upgrades). The early stage of current market offerings (which often lack interoperability between different equipment makers and vehicle models) further compounds the cost challenges of V2X. However, this whitepaper finds that, for households with compatible EVs prioritizing the elimination of fossil fuel use and a need for home power backup systems, V2X technology can be financially viable. When paired with appropriate utility compensation and advancements in technology, V2X applications have the potential to become economical alternatives to generators for home backup power. The whitepaper encourages further exploration of V2X systems, especially the exploration and quantification of grid benefits of residential V2G systems. The whitepaper concludes that monitoring technological advancements, costs, installation experiences, and continued progress and cost reductions will all be crucial for the long-term viability and adoption of V2X systems in Vermont's residential market.

Multifamily Passive House Certification: A New Reach Standard for Vermont?

Wed, 25 Jun 2025 17:34:00 GMT

Efficiency standards for multifamily new construction (MFNC) in Vermont have evolved significantly over the last two decades, and Efficiency Vermont’s involvement in high-performance standards (and related incentives) for these structures has also advanced. State energy codes have also improved and are on a trajectory toward net-zero-ready requirements for new homes by 2030. Improving energy codes diminishes available energy savings for MFNC programs. As Efficiency Vermont’s High-Performance Standard (EVTHP) for MFNC continues to evolve, it approaches the level of the Passive House (PH) standard in attributes like balanced ventilation, continuous thermal barriers, and increased airtightness. In this whitepaper, Efficiency Vermont researchers studied 10 multifamily projects and evaluated real-world building data to investigate energy performance and cost impacts. They found PH projects show an average of 19% lower operational energy use when compared to EVTHP buildings. Other PH benefits include design flexibility, optimized and integrated building systems, independent review of design and construction, modeled predicted energy use, and a higher level of reliable energy savings. Researchers described the added cost and complexity for PH design, construction, and verification. They also noted that the available incentives may help cover much of the incremental costs, while other stakeholders called for additional incentives to support PH certification. The paper recommends that Efficiency Vermont consider supporting Passive House certification as a new “reach goal” for MFNC projects, alongside the existing EVTHP program. Doing so could accelerate market transformation and cultivate broader workforce alignment with high-performance standards regardless of the standard sought.

Mobile and Manufactured Housing Market Characterization

Mon, 31 Mar 2025 21:49:46 GMT

Mobile and manufactured homes represent about 6% of Vermont’s housing stock. While an important source of affordable housing, manufactured housing (MH) often finds occupants burdened with higher energy usage while also facing barriers to weatherization and other efficiency upgrades. These homes also tend to rely on aging or inefficient domestic hot water systems and fossil fuel heating systems. This research assesses the landscape of energy efficiency programs available to MH residents in Vermont, their uptake, and other state and national programs that provide examples of serving this market. Ultimately, researchers determined that meaningful and lasting impact for these customers will require funding that can address structural and other repair issues in these homes (including innovative programs that can provide home repair funding and financing), and a workforce trained to the unique needs of MH customers. The research team concluded by recommending better data tracking procedures to track housing unit type and MH program activity, continuing to foster partnerships with housing stakeholders, a focus on workforce development and capacity building to serve MH homes, and oversampling MH units in future market assessments to develop a deeper understanding of MH opportunities and barriers.

Heating Pattern Cluster Analysis of Winter AMI Data

Mon, 31 Mar 2025 21:20:57 GMT

Heating electrification is a key strategy for reducing Vermont’s greenhouse gas emissions from the thermal sector. Specific and targeted approaches are needed to help transition customers from unregulated and price-volatile fossil fuels to more efficient and regulated electricity for heating and cooling. However, identifying customers poised to make such a switch can be challenging. In this research, Efficiency Vermont leveraged Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) data to identify customers' energy use patterns, including those who were likely using non-electric heating on days with low outdoor temperatures. This was accomplished by using open-source regression models to disaggregate heating and cooling loads for individual customers, allowing Efficiency Vermont to create a detailed landscape of electric heating and cooling usage for a given population and distinguish sub-populations based on their heating source. Analyzing these patterns revealed customers who are likely ideal candidates for electrification programs. These findings highlight opportunities to optimize and support energy efficiency programs and help design more intentional electrification programs, particularly for homes where electrification could make the most impact.

Energy Resilience Planning Framework

Mon, 31 Mar 2025 16:29:18 GMT

The energy resilience planning landscape includes a variety of strategies and evaluations, and in this research paper, Efficiency Vermont surveyed existing resources to develop a shared definition of energy resilience suitable for Vermont that can guide planners through a comprehensive strategy to prepare for, adapt to, and recover from energy disruptions. The research explored options that emphasized economically achievable approaches that are viable for Vermont communities, that mitigate catastrophic risks, and can benefit from implementing tools developed to guide the process of developing energy resilience plans. The framework was tested with four demonstration projects, allowing for both residential and commercial applications for developing an energy resilience plans.

2024 Vermont Heat Pump Market Assessment

Mon, 17 Mar 2025 20:31:00 GMT

Vermont has seen significant uptake of ductless mini split heat pump technology over the last decade, with 70,960 units installed since midstream heat pump programs launched in 2015 – the highest per capita rate of any state in the Northeast.

This Market Assessment investigates the status of heat pump technology, availability, accessibility, and adoption in Vermont as of fall 2024. The assessment includes cold-climate heat pumps used for space heating and cooling, and heat pump water heaters, with a focus on the residential market.

Ten percent of housing units in Vermont have a heat pumps, indicating that Vermont is in the “early adopter” phase of market adoption. However, customer research indicates that some of the potential emissions reductions associated with heat pump installation are not being realized due to customers’ use of their heat pumps. A coordinated, market-wide approach will support them in exploring and understanding the technology, and in taking their next steps.

Load Shape Segmentation for Better Grid Stability and Increased Customer Benefit

Fri, 14 Mar 2025 18:39:00 GMT

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions through beneficial electrification and increased renewable energy production necessitates improvements in energy load management. Utilizing advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) data, this research project used a random sample of 50,000 residential customer meters to demonstrate the use of load clustering to identify typical load patterns within a population. The study identified load patterns that coincided with grid peaks and evaluated opportunities for technologies to reduce or shift usage out of key times of day. The research team also summarized load patterns across a sample of potentially low-income utility accounts to identify specific energy usage patterns within this sub-sector. The team also assessed an AMI features-based approach to summarizing energy use data, finding that specific features (such as baseload, heating and cooling degree day model slopes, and seasonal peak demand) can help identify use patterns well-suited for certain efficiency measures or programs. When comparing AMI data to nearly 2,000 previously completed efficiency projects (related to heating, cooling, and domestic hot water), the team determined AMI features can identify projects that are more likely to result in positive savings. The research team concluded that a combination of AMI filters and additional equity indicators could point out savings opportunities not just in the highest users but equitably across a population, improving targeted customer outreach and program design as well as further advancing electrification and managing the resulting increased load on the grid.

Industrialized Weatherization: Comprehensive Deep Energy Retrofits with Prefabricated Panel Block Wall Insulation

Fri, 14 Mar 2025 18:13:42 GMT

Retrofitting Vermont’s existing building stock and developing local workforces are strategic initiatives under Efficiency Vermont’s 2021-2023 triennial plan, and Vermont law specifies principles for meeting State energy policy targets by, among other measures, weatherizing 120,000 homes by 2030. This research project offers a possible prototype for effectively achieving the 2030 weatherization goal by evaluating a super-insulated wall retrofitting process using prefabricated panel block wall insulation, a form of industrialized weatherization or industrialized construction developed by the Fraunhofer USA Center for Manufacturing Innovation. Work began in 2023 and reported in this paper evaluated panel block (PB) technology’s potential in terms of market appeal and acceptance, while also helping Efficiency Vermont understand the suitability and market potential of the PB system and deep energy retrofit process for Vermont households and businesses, thus informing future efficiency and decarbonization programs. The team found that recommended PB installation demonstration projects shared several characteristics, including very simple designs, a lack of historical preservation status for the site, minimal or no porch and no stoop roof, a need for re-siding or deteriorating lead paint on the siding, and an experienced general contractor and homeowner willing to apply the innovative technology with technical assistance and support from Fraunhofer and Efficiency Vermont at all phases of the project.

Evaluating Equity and Justice Impacts of Energy Efficiency Projects

Fri, 14 Mar 2025 17:55:56 GMT

Energy equity is defined in the industry as the fair and impartial distribution of clean energy services and technologies. Equity is also supported by the work to create more just processes, outcomes, and systems. Equity metrics can help identify and address disparities in how the benefits of energy efficiency programs are distributed, the financial burdens customers face related to energy, and help improve program design, participation, and stakeholder trust. Efficiency Vermont has investigated these metrics and derived a framework of insights and intersections of equity and environmental justice. Using 2022 research evaluating equity and justice impacts from Efficiency Vermont programs (and the subsequent identification, quantification, and application of equity metrics), this research project determined which equity metrics could provide the greatest insight into equitable program design by pairing available program data with external datasets to carry out an equity analysis. The team also incorporated equity questions into Efficiency Vermont’s brand survey work of approximately 250 small, medium-sized, and large businesses (SMBs). The research team concluded that a multi-pronged strategy to address equity in the commercial and industrial market should include support for SMBs, identifying businesses with equity missions and mindsets, communication of Efficiency Vermont’s own work to advance equity, and conducting deeper research for C&I customers. To overcome gaps in residential equity, the team recommends collecting additional structural equity metric data for at least a year, conducting a new distributional equity analysis with direct data, and additional or expanded pilot projects designed to address barriers faced by low-income, moderate-income, and renter populations.

Enhancing Carbon Reduction Estimation: A Time-Centric Analysis of Vermont's Clean Energy Programs

Fri, 14 Mar 2025 17:34:00 GMT

Vermont’s clean energy program efforts now include transitioning fossil fuel energy use onto an increasingly renewable electric grid and shifting energy time of use to periods where renewable energy is most abundant. Quantifying carbon reduction as a result of these efforts might require greater consideration for the time component of energy use. A more granular accounting of program outcomes would be possible with higher-frequency data sources for carbon emissions and program impact. This project explores the value of higher frequency methods to better inform impact estimates for carbon reduction, with two separate modeling exercises that compare carbon reduction estimates: one that reviews annual emissions reductions for a historical project scenario and compares estimations to a ground truth based on actual emissions data from the ISO New England, and a second that explores a program implementation context to compare those same methods to current program impact estimation practices using long-run emissions data from the New England Avoided Energy Supply Cost study. Ultimately, the researchers found using an average emission factor to determine the emissions saved by a particular measure is nearly as accurate as using an actual, unique emission factor for every hour of the year, with rare exceptions.

Efficiency Vermont’s Approach to Energy Resilience

Fri, 14 Mar 2025 17:18:00 GMT

As the energy industry undergoes a rapid increase in the use of renewable energy, Efficiency Vermont is supporting customers and Vermont’s energy system in that evolution through the delivery of energy efficiency and flexible load management programs, long-term resource planning, and emerging technology development. As customers electrify their thermal and transportation loads, their impact on grid stability (or instability) increases—while also driving an increased dependence on the grid. Increased severe weather events and reliance on intermittently available renewable energy present additional reliability risks. As Efficiency Vermont co-designs systems-optimized programs and services with partners, we also ensure the benefits of energy resilience are distributed equitably across Vermont through the purposeful allocation of resources and opportunities to promote equitable outcomes across the state. For this R&D project, Efficiency Vermont sought to define an appropriate role for supporting customers to achieve energy resilience (as allowed within VEIC’s Order of Appointment), mapped Vermont’s policies and regulations related to energy, and mapped Vermont’s energy system from the perspective of customer energy resilience. The research team identified ways to improve customer energy resilience, including a communications strategy that cultivates a culture of energy resilience, sustaining resilience efforts by serving customers and utilities together, utilizing demonstration pilot projects, and measuring impact by quantifying the value of resilience for stakeholders that could be incorporated into future demand resource plans.

2023 Focused Communities Key Findings

Thu, 30 May 2024 18:39:35 GMT

Learn how Efficiency Vermont is making energy-saving tips easy to understand for everyone, no matter what language they speak. Find out about our new efforts to make our services accessible to all Vermonters.

Vermont's 2023 Energy Burden Report

Mon, 21 Aug 2023 14:53:00 GMT

Energy burden is the percentage of a household’s income spent on electricity, heating, and transportation. Measuring this burden is a powerful way to understand the impact of energy costs across the state, and where energy expenses are highest. Spending on energy competes with other household costs like food, housing and health care. Understanding energy burden, and tracking it over time, can informs state programs and efficiency measures that aim to address high energy costs.

Read what Peter Walke, Efficiency Vermont’s Managing Director, thinks about the importance of understanding energy burden.

The 2023 Energy Burden Report finds the average Vermont household energy burden is 11 percent. About half of that spending (45 percent) is for transportation. Heating, or thermal energy, accounts for another 35 percent, with 20 percent for electricity.

In all, it adds up to more than $7,000 in energy spending annually.

The 2023 report builds on Efficiency Vermont's 2019 report and its 2016 predecessor. This year’s report uses data primarily from 2017-2021. It provides energy burden analysis at the town level, finding the most-burdened communities are in rural areas and in the Northeast Kingdom. This year’s report also calculates energy burden at the census block group level, revealing some of the most-burdened communities are also in cities like Barre, Rutland, St. Johnsbury and Manchester.

Additionally, the report tracks efficiency programs and clean energy technologies that can help reduce costs and energy use.

Download the full report below, or review our interactive maps of energy burden. We've also created maps, graphics, and other resources in our Media Kit to help you understand the report and utilize its findings in your own work.

Download Energy Burden Report by Town

Download Energy Burden Report by Block Group

Download the Media Kit

Evaluating Equity and Justice Impacts of Energy Efficiency Projects

Wed, 07 Jun 2023 16:00:00 GMT

Energy efficiency projects focused on equality enable all participants to get the same resources and level of support. Programs focused on equity are able to better allocate resources to achieve equal outcomes. Equitable programs require a multifaceted approach and commitment to constant improvements. This paper examined frameworks around equity in energy efficiency projects, and scrutinized strategies for achieving equitable outcomes. Methods to increase program impacts were identified, like employing more expansive definitions of equity in efficiency projects, identifying gaps in the equity frameworks currently in use, and adopting new metrics to better capture the broader societal impacts of efficiency. The research also engaged stakeholders, like commercial customers, regional partners, and utilities to understand their equity frameworks, priorities, and gaps. And the paper identified two ways to apply more robust equity metrics: by evaluating the non-energy community benefits of a project, and by applying equity considerations to evaluations of a given project's performance. A list of new equity metrics were identified that can help better identify and measure the equity impact of efficiency measures.

Energy Resilience: Three Multi-Year Energy Resilience Demonstration Projects

Tue, 06 Jun 2023 19:00:00 GMT

Energy resilience involves a set of assets and plans to minimize a loss of power at a home or business during an outage. Resilience measures are increasingly common as the electricity grid evolves to incorporate micro-grids, battery storage, and other strategies. This paper reviews three multi-year energy resilience demonstration projects undertaken at Efficiency Vermont. One project looked at a microgrid that would construct zero-energy modular homes to run off a microgrid during a power outage from a severe storm (under normal operations, that microgrid would offer grid and economic benefits to the utility and community). Using direct current (DC) rather than alternating current and related DC-capable equipment would let the microgrid realize a roughly 10% efficiency improvement, but many decisions must still be made about DC appliances and operation and ownership of the proposed microgrid. Another project installed heating mitigation measures that employed phase change materials in two Vermont buildings; energy use characteristics required further refinement in one, while another needed PCM changes to become ready to measure. A third project evaluated the relationship between winter temperatures and how long occupants could stay comfortable in their home during a power outage, limitations of the modeling software will need to be addressed before useful results can be collected. These projects all help inform homeowners, businesses, and utilities about the most cost-effective ways to implement resilience, from simple and inexpensive options to high-capital projects.