Effect of Information and Pricing on Residential Electricity Consumption in Austin, Texas

Last registered on June 10, 2019

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Effect of Information and Pricing on Residential Electricity Consumption in Austin, Texas
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0004278
Initial registration date
June 04, 2019

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
June 10, 2019, 10:06 PM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Region

Primary Investigator

Affiliation
Yale University

Other Primary Investigator(s)

Additional Trial Information

Status
Completed
Start date
2013-01-01
End date
2014-12-31
Secondary IDs
Abstract
This study examines a field experiment in Texas that includes pricing and informational interventions to encourage energy conservation during summer peak load days when the social cost of generation is the highest. A complementary experimental program also lowers nighttime prices during the off-peak season.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Gillingham, Kenneth. 2019. "Effect of Information and Pricing on Residential Electricity Consumption in Austin, Texas." AEA RCT Registry. June 10. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.4278-1.0
Former Citation
Gillingham, Kenneth. 2019. "Effect of Information and Pricing on Residential Electricity Consumption in Austin, Texas." AEA RCT Registry. June 10. https://www.socialscienceregistry.org/trials/4278/history/47862
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Intervention Start Date
2013-01-01
Intervention End Date
2014-12-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Electricity consumption
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
The 256 households in the Austin, Texas Mueller neighborhood were randomly assigned to one of five groups:

1. Control - 57 homes did not receive any treatment during 2013 and 2014. Like the other groups, they also had appliance-level and circuit-level metering.
2. Passive Information - 44 homes were provided access to an online portal that tracks appliance-level electricity use.\footnote{Each participant had access to an online portal. For the portal treatment group, this was the only treatment. The portal displayed monthly whole home energy use in kWh, monthly energy costs in dollars per appliance, energy generation cost in dollars if the participant had solar panels, real-time energy consumption in kWh, monthly energy cost comparison to other participants within the same zip code, and monthly energy usage trends.}
3. Active Information - 46 homes were sent a text message appeal 24 hours prior to every critical peak pricing event stating ``A Pecan Street Project critical peak event is taking place tomorrow from 4 PM to 7 PM.''
4. Active Information + Recommendation - 47 homes received the same text message with one of three recommended actions: ``Pre-cool your home,'' ``Reduce your air conditioning usage,'' or ``Do not use your clothes dryer.''
5. Pricing - 62 homes faced critical peak pricing during the summer months (June-September) of 2013 and 2014. They received a text message 24 hours prior to each event stating ``Tomorrow is a Critical Peak Pricing event. Your experimental electric rate will be \$0.64 per kilowatt hour from 4 PM - 7 PM. Pecan Street Inc. Pricing.'' During the months of March, April, May, November, and December, when wholesale prices at night are low, they received a text message 24 hours prior to the start of the nighttime pricing stating, for example ``Pricing Trial Reminder: November and December are wind enhancement months.'' The lower experimental price was 2 cents/kWh. The pricing group received a text message one day prior to the beginning of each wind night pricing month.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
in office by a computer
Randomization Unit
households
Was the treatment clustered?
Yes

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
256 households
Sample size: planned number of observations
96 million household-minutes
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
See experimental design
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
IRB Approval Date
IRB Approval Number

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials