Energy-conservation work may target hotels, motels

As Sierra Pacific Power looks for ways to reduce power use by its customers, it hopes to target the folks who leave air conditioners running in their motel rooms when they leave in the morning.

The carrot it will dangle in front of lodging operators? Annual savings typically run $100 to $150 a room after energy-conservation measures are in place.

The Reno-based utility asked that the Public Utilities Commission OK a plan to provide incentives to lodging operators who undertake conservation programs. With PUC approval, the work would begin in early 2008.

John Hargrove, senior program manager for energy efficiency and conservation at Sierra Pacific, says independent operators of hotels and motels in the region may not be aware of all the energy-saving technology available.

One common energy-saving tool, he says, is an updated version of the key card that opens most hotel doors.

That same card can be used to activate heating and cooling systems in the room. When the guest leaves, she takes the key card out of the utility controller she needs it, after all, to get back into the room and the heat or air conditioning reverts to a preset level.

"This is a way for a hotel to save a lot of energy," Hargrove says.

Another possibility comes from the installation of motion detectors to turn off lights in unoccupied bathrooms. Because many hotel guests leave bathroom lights on all night, Sierra Pacific suggests that lodging operators install night lights. They use dramatically less energy than the full bathroom lighting.

Even routine steps such as adoption of energy-efficient fluorescent light bulbs can pay dividends for lodging owners, Hargrove says.

Sierra Pacific proposes to fold the lodging-focused energy initiative into its established Sure Bet program, which provides rebates to business owners who invest in equipment and systems that reduce energy use.

While the lodging program would be new to northern Nevada, Hargrove said Sierra Pacific's sister company, Nevada Power, has found success knocking on hotel owners' doors in the past year.

"We're finding a great interest on the part of those hotel owners," he says.

But he says the utility has learned it can't wait for mom-and-pop lodging operators to make the first move.

"They tend to be independent," he says. "And they are internally focused."

The energy-conservation effort is part of Sierra Pacific's plans to meet the region's energy needs. While a big part of the plan involves construction of power plants and buying electricity from renewable sources, a kilowatt-hour saved through conservation reduces the need for new construction.