By Ellen Zuckerman at Google, Brian Turner at Advanced Energy United, and Courtney Fieldman at the Southwest Energy Efficiency Project
Nevada is facing a growing energy dilemma. The state's rapid economic expansion is adding electricity demand faster than utilities can build new power. Yet, as the grid stretches to its limit, critical opportunities to make better use of existing energy resources, create energy capacity, and lower customer bills are still sitting on the shelf. Last year, NV Energy set aside funding to help northern Nevada families replace aging, inefficient air conditioners and heat pumps, but at the end of the year, nearly 40 percent of the budget remained unspent. For too many families, even with rebates, the high upfront cost of a new unit puts these upgrades out of reach, missing a critical opportunity to lower monthly bills and strengthen the grid.
At the same time, battery energy storage is creating revolutionary opportunities for households to save money and support the electric grid. A battery helps a family manage its electricity bills and ride out outages while giving NV Energy power it can call on during periods of high demand. Yet in 2025, only 15 northern Nevada households with batteries took part in NV Energy's residential battery program.
Nevada has an opportunity to address both challenges by bringing large energy customers and local communities together. A proposed pilot program run by NV Energy, under the oversight of the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada, would allow large load customers to voluntarily fund home energy upgrades and battery installations for residents, helping lower household energy costs and creating more room on the grid for new economic growth. That’s why our three organizations filed joint testimony on September 22 asking the utilities commission to approve a Large Customer Offsite Demand Side Management (DSM) pilot as part of NV Energy's 2026 Integrated Resource Plan.
This pilot allows large customers to invest in energy-saving improvements throughout communities where they operate. Google has proposed to lead by contributing $5 million per year from 2027 through 2029. The funding would support expanded rebates for efficient air conditioners and heat pumps, as well as incentives for home batteries, with a goal of 5 to 15 megawatts (MW) of new peak savings each year.
Google would cover all incentives plus administrative costs through a charge on its own bill. In return, and only after NV Energy verifies the real-world savings, Google would earn credits that offset part of its electricity use, while the power saved stays on the local grid.
We come to this from different corners of the energy world. Google operates data centers in Storey and Clark Counties and believes in directly investing in and supporting the communities where it operates. Advanced Energy United represents companies building the technologies a modern grid needs and that provide customers more control over their energy costs. The Southwest Energy Efficiency Project has long argued that efficiency is the cheapest, cleanest resource for protecting consumers, and we think the Commission can read our agreement as evidence that the program serves the broad public interest.
The proposed pilot would increase rebates for residents who replace inefficient air conditioners and heat pumps, prioritizing low- and moderate-income households and neighborhoods facing greater challenges. For residents, that could mean a more comfortable home during Nevada’s intense summer heat, lower electric bills, and access to modern appliances that might otherwise be unaffordable. Home batteries could provide another layer of protection during outages while allowing households to store electricity and use it when they need it most.
Under current budgets, NV Energy projects that its northern Nevada efficiency and demand response programs will deliver 48 MW of peak reduction by 2030. By comparison, an analysis by The Brattle Group found that large-customer funding could make 221 to 404 MW more capacity available in the same region, and over 1,000 MW statewide. That is capacity that can help power Nevada’s growing communities and businesses without requiring utilities to build as much new generation. Nearly every one of these measures costs less per unit of capacity than building a new gas-fired combustion turbine - and the costs are funded entirely by participating large customers, not the broader public.
When the utilities commission asked for more specifics on an earlier version of this concept in 2024, our organizations went back to work. Through collaborative workshops with Nevada stakeholders, we developed clear rules for eligibility, budgeting, and independent evaluation. Now that the plan is ready, we urge the commission to approve the pilot so NV Energy can begin delivering home upgrades in 2027.
Nevada's utility and its largest customers should keep working together to clear the way for programs like this one. When large companies use their scale to fund capacity in surrounding neighborhoods, local households benefit from lower bills and a more reliable grid. An approved pilot in Nevada would give other states an ambitious, working model to follow.
~Ellen Zuckerman, Brian Turner, and Courtney Fieldman are energy policy leaders advancing efficiency and clean energy solutions.
