Other Ohio utilities use coupons to promote bulbs

October 9, 2009 at 12:00a.m.

SPECIAL TO THE VINDICATOR

COLUMBUS — FirstEnergy isn’t the only company promoting the use of compact fluorescent light bulbs to save energy.

Other power companies are distributing coupons that customers can use to purchase energy-efficient light bulbs on their own, saving $1 to $2 on the price of each bulb. But American Electric Power, Duke Power, and Dayton Power and Light also can charge customers to recover the costs involved.

Shana Eiselstein, PUCO spokeswoman, said Dayton Power and Light customers are paying about $2 a month toward the costs of a larger energy-efficiency initiative, of which the light bulb program is a part. AEP and Duke are not charging customers, yet, but are expected to seek approval for electric bill riders in the future.

“The companies at some point will come in and seek recovery of those program costs, including the dollar per bulb [customers] may be getting off the price of the bulb,” Eiselstein said. She added later, “We do not have a set rider at this point. The rider is set at zero until the companies come in and actually seek recovery of their program costs.”

More than 800,000 bulbs have already been sold through the AEP program, while another 700,000 have been sold through the Dayton program, according to PUCO. Sales numbers from Duke were not available.