Led by the Ministry of Energy, Mines & Petroleum Resources (MEMPR), the BC Partnership for Energy Conservation & Efficiency supports public utilities such as BC Hydro, Terasen Gas, FortisBC and Pacific Northern Gas in pursuing cost effective and competitive demand side energy management opportunities. Demand side management programs help customers choose energy efficient equipment and reduce consumption.

The BC Energy Plan calls for greater collaboration and coordination among utility demand side management programs and provincial energy conservation and efficiency policies and programs:

• Ensure a coordinated approach to conservation and efficiency is actively pursued in British Columbia.
• Encourage utilities and the BC Utilities Commission to pursue cost-effective and competitive demand side management opportunities.
• Explore with B.C. utilities new rate structures that encourage energy efficiency and conservation.

Utilities and Provincial Energy/Climate Change Targets

Since the release of the BC Energy Plan, provincial goals have been enshrined in legislation. These include:

• Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 6% by 2012;
• Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 18% by 2016;
• Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 33% by 2020;
• Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 80% 2050; and
• To achieve 50% of BC Hydro’s incremental resource needs through conservation by 2020. 

Achieving these targets will only be possible through aggressive and coordinated action by the provincial government and public and private utilities, acting in concert with a broad range of stakeholders including industry, local government, relevant federal agencies, environmental NGOs, and the applicable trades.

Government is also giving utilities new tools to help meet the targets.  Recent amendments to the Utilities Commission Act bring the legislation in line with the conservation, energy security and climate action goals of the BC Energy Plan. The amendments align the Act with the Province's energy objectives:

• to encourage utilities to reduce greenhouse gas emissions;
• pursue energy conservation and efficiency;
• produce and obtain electricity from clean or renewable sources;
• develop energy transmission infrastructure and capacity in time to meet customers' needs; 
• leverage innovative energy technologies; and
• require utilities to meet new demand through demand side management measures before selecting new supply side or contracted purchases.

A broad range of stakeholders convened over 2007/2008 to discuss how energy efficiency programs and policy development could be better coordinated in B.C. The stakeholders developed 10 Principles for Coordination of Energy Conservation and Efficiency: