Connecticut Ranks #6 in USA in Energy Efficiency, Continuing Top Ten Streak

Connecticut ranks as the #6 state in the nation in energy efficiency, according to an analysis by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE).  A new report by the Council found that Massachusetts continues to edge out California as the most energy-efficient state in the nation for the fourth year in a row.  Connecticut has been a steady top-ten state since the annual survey began eight years ago, but dropped one slot this year. Rounding out the top 10 are Rhode Island  (the state’s first time in top five), Oregon, and Vermont (all tied for #3); Connecticut (#6); New York (#7); Washington (#8); Maryland (#9); and Minnesota (#10).

Arkansas, the District of Columbia, Kentucky, and Wisconsin are the four most improved energy-efficiency states for 2014. Indiana and Ohio fell the furthest in the rankings due to decisions by legislators in both states to roll back energy savings targets.  They were among 23 states that dropped in the state-by-state rankings.  At the bottom of the rankings, the five states most in need of improvement on energy efficiency in 2014 are North Dakota, Wyoming, South Dakota, Mississippi, and Alaska.

Overall, states are ramping up their commitments to energy efficiency, the report indicated, as governors and lawmakers in state capitals across the nation continue to take major steps to lower energy costs, reduce pollution, and save consumers money by increasing their states’ energy efficiency.  Sixteen states rose in the rankings this year, in the 8th annual edition of the State Energy Efficiency Scorecard.

Connecticut was ranked fifth a year ago, and sixth the previous year.  In 2011, the state ranked #9 and in 2010, ranked #8.  State officials noted that Connecticut continues to be a leader in the nation, and the strong ranking is likely to improve in the coming year as increased funding for energy efficiency programs, not fully reflected in this year's survey, have an impact. Also noted was the state's decision to invest in infrastructure, such as charging stations throughout the state for vehicles, which was not an area of focus for the report but will be beneficial for Connecticut consumers.

The State Energy Efficiency Scorecard benchmarks states across six policy areas – utility policies and programs, transportation initiatives, building energy codes, combined heat and power development, state government-led initiatives, and state-level appliance standards. In total, states are scored on more than 30 individual metrics. Data is collected from publicly available sources and vetted by state energy offices and public utility commissions, according to the Council.  The 2014 report found that nationwide, total budgets for electricity efficiency programs in 2013 reached $6.3 billion. Adding that to natural gas program budgets of $1.4 billion, total efficiency program budgets were estimated to be more than $7.7 billion in 2013.

The leading states in utility-sector energy efficiency programs and policies were Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Vermont, and the leading state in building energy codes and compliance was California. California and New York led the way in energy-efficient transportation policies.

Maggie Molina, director of ACEEE’s Utilities, State, and Local Policy program, said: “Smart energy efficiency choices maintain the same comfort, convenience, and quality of life that consumers want and expect. Energy efficiency is also good for business. State action on energy efficiency improves bottom lines, drives investment across all sectors of the economy, creates jobs, and offsets the environmental harms created by the energy production system.”

The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy acts as a catalyst to advance energy efficiency policies, programs, technologies, investments, and behaviors.

CT’s 40 Fastest Growing Tech Companies Achieve Statewide Recognition

Connecticut’s fasted growing technology companies will be the center of attention Thursday evening as the Connecticut Technology Council (CTC) and Marcum LLP spotlight the 2014 Marcum Tech Top 40. Now in its 7^th year, the annual list features privately and publicly held companies, including some newcomers to the top 40. The 2014 winners are predominantly privately held companies, but 12 public companies also made the list, including Rogers Corporation, Gartner Inc. and Alexion Pharmaceuticals. That’s a slight drop from a year ago, when 14 public companies made the list.

Geographically, Fairfield County is home to 16 winning companies this year, followed by Hartford County and New Haven County, both with ten companies. For Fairfield and New Haven counties, the count increased by two businesses from a year ago; for Hartford County, the number was unchanged from last year. 

The selected companies have at least $3 million in annual revenue and a demonstrated record of growth in each of the preceding four years.  Four of the businesses have over $1 billion in revenue.

The Marcum Tech Top 40 recognizes technology leaders in six industry sectors, including Advanced Manufacturing, Energy/Environmental, Life Sciences, New Media/Internet/Telecom, IT Services, and Software. This year’s winners range from newcomer VRSim, Inc., a creator of virtual reality training tools for industrial and manufacturing applications, to Priceline.com, a leader in mobile travel.

Bruce Carlson, CTC’s President and CEO added, “Connecticut is proud of its remarkable heritage of innovation and invention. Job growth in Connecticut is going to come from the technology sector and these Tech Top 40 companies are a great example of the range of technology companies that are growing substantially in Connecticut.”

Among the names on this year’s list:  Frontier Communications, based in Stamford, providing communications services to residential and business customers across the country (in the news this year for the proposed purchase of AT&T’s business in Connecticut); and Bolt Technology Corporation, based in Norwalk, the leading worldwide developer and manufacturer of seismic energy sources, synchronizers and underwater connectors used in offshore seismic exploration for oil and gas; and Fitlinxx, based in Shelton,  an industry leading provider of wellness applications, wireless activity monitors, and health tracking devices that motivate people to live active and healthy lifestyles.

The city with the largest number of companies on the Top 40 list this year is Stamford, with six, followed by Norwalk with four, Shelton with three, and Wallingford, South Windsor, Simsbury and New Haven, each with two businesses on the list.  Other towns with a top 40 high tech business are Torrington, Danbury, West Hartford, Cheshire, Guilford, Greenwich, Plainville, Middlebury, New London, Killingly, Middletown, Fairfield, Madison, Branford, Farmington, Glastonbury, Windsor, Orange and East Hartford.

“Technology companies have a set of shared challenges that range from capital-raising and complex revenue reporting to intellectual property management and international expansion.  Whether they are private enterprises or Fortune 500 companies, this year’s Marcum Tech Top 40 winners all demonstrate management excellence and market foresight,” said Alex Discepolo, a Tax Partner in Marcum’s New Haven office and Practice Leader of the Firm’s High Technology Services Group.

The October 2 awards program, being held at the Oakdale Theater in Wallingford, will include an exhibition featuring the Marcum Tech Top 40 companies. Six category winners will be announced, and one company will be named overall winner for demonstrating the greatest percentage growth in revenue across all the technology verticals.

The Connecticut Technology Council is a statewide association of technology oriented companies and institutions, providing leadership in areas of policy advocacy, community building and assistance for growing companies. Speaking for 2,500 companies that employ some 200,000 residents, the Connecticut Technology Council seeks to provide a strong and urgent voice in support of the creation of a culture of innovation.

 The Tech Top 40:

Advanced Manufacturing

• APS Technology Inc – Wallingford
• Bolt Technology Corporation – Norwalk
• Dymax Corporation – Torrington
• Revolution Lighting Technologies Inc. – Stamford
• Rogers Corporation – Rogers 

Energy/Environmental/Green Technology

• FuelCell Energy, Inc – Danbury
• Proton OnSite – Wallingford

 IT Services

• Cervalis LLC – Shelton
• Datto Inc. – Norwalk
• Gartner Inc. – Stamford
• Information Services Group Inc. – Stamford
• IT direct, LLC. – West Hartford
• VLink Inc. – South Windsor

Life Sciences

• Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. – Cheshire
• Bio-Med Devices, Inc. – Guilford
• Metrum Research Group LLC. – Tariffville

 New Media/Internet/Telecom

• Chief Executive Group – Greenwich
• EasySeat, LLC – Plainville
• Frontier Communications – Stamford
• HealthPlanOne LLC – Shelton
• iSend, LLC – Middlebury
• Job Target, LLC – New London
• M2 Media Group – Stamford
• Priceline.com, Inc. – Norwalk
• Reality Interactive, LLC. – Middletown
• TVEyes Inc. – Fairfield

Software

• Clarity Software Solutions, Inc. – Madison
• Core Informatics, LLC – Branford
• Evariant, Inc. – Farmington
• Evolution1, Inc. – Simsbury
• Fitlinxx, Inc. – Shelton
• Higher One, Inc. – New Haven
• KenCast, Inc. – Norwalk
• Link Systems Inc. – Stamford
• Shoptech Corporation – Glastonbury
• Square 9 Softworks Inc. – New Haven
• SS&C Technologies Holdings Inc. – Windsor
• Tangoe Inc. – Orange
• TicketNetwork - South Windsor
• VRSim, Inc. – East Hartford

CT Ranks in Top 10 for Lowest Total Carbon Emissions, Lowest Per Capita Emissions

Connecticut ranks in the top 10 among the states in both the lowest total state energy related carbon dioxide emissions and emissions per capita.  The state ranked second, tied with California and just behind New York, in the lowest emissions levels per capita.  In total state energy related emissions, Connecticut placed in a tie for tenth place. Greenhouse gas emissions for all sources were considered in compiling the data, according to Bloomberg.com, which published the rankings last month, based on 2011 U.S. Census population estimates and statistics from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.  Sources of emission include electric power production, industries, residential heating and transportation.

The lowest state emission levels per capita, in metric tons of carbon dioxide, are New York (8.1), Connecticut (9.2), California (9.2), Oregon (9.3), Vermont (9.6), Massachusetts (10.0), Washington (10.1), Idaho (10.1), Rhode Island (10.5) and Maryland (11.0).  The highest levels per capita were in Wyoming (112.6), North Dakota (79), Alaska (52.7) and West Virginia (51.7).

In total state energy related carbon dioxide emissions, by million metric tons, the states with the lowest emission levels are Vermont (6), Rhode Island (11), Delaware (12), South Dakota (14), New Hampshire (16), Idaho (16), Maine (17), Hawaii (19), Montana (32), Connecticut (33) and Nevada (33).

The states with the highest emission levels were Texas (656 metric tons), California (346), and Pennsylvania (245).

Connecticut Energy Costs are Third Highest in the US, Analysis Finds

The only states in the nation with higher monthly energy bills for consumers are Mississippi and Hawaii. Connecticut is ranked as the 3rd most energy expensive state in the country, according to a new analysis by WalletHub, which used six key metrics to rank the states according to their tendency to produce the highest or lowest monthly energy bills. The analysis points out that “lower prices don’t always equate with lower costs, as consumption is a key determinant in the total amount of an energy bill.” Connecticut’s monthly energy cost for consumers, according to the analysis, is $404, ranking the state 49th out of 51 (the 50 states plus the District of Columbia). Mississippi’s total monthly cost paid by consumers averages $414, while Hawaii’s is $451.

In terms of specific energy sources, the state ranked 50th in monthly electric cost ($143) and 48th in the cost of natural gas ($94). Perhaps due to the size of Connecticut, the state ranked 14th in fuel cost, at $167 per month, despite the state’s gas tax being among the highest in the nation. (see breakdown below)

In the United States, 7.1 percent of the average consumer’s total income is spent on energy costs, including fuel, natural gas and electricity.

The states with the least expensive energy costs for consumers, taking consumption into account, are Colorado ($301), Washington State ($302), Montana ($305), Rhode Island ($307), Nebraska ($312), the District of Columbia ($314), Pennsylvania ($317), Arkansas ($319), Delaware ($319) and Iowa ($319).

The other New England States, in addition to Rhode Island landing towards the top and Connecticut near the bottom, were bunched in the middle: Massachusetts ranked #35, New Hampshire #26, Vermont #28, and Maine #32.

Breaking out prices from consumption, Connecticut’s energy picture for consumers as compared with other states, is:

• 49th – Price of Electricity
• 16th – Electricity Consumption per Consumer
• 44th – Price of Natural Gas
• 48th – Natural Gas Consumption per Consumer
• 46th – Price of Fuel
• 10th – Fuel Consumption per Driver

The analysis was released in July because it tends to be the hottest month of the year in the contiguous U.S., and as a result it has the highest energy consumption.

If you’re wondering how all this was calculated, WalletHub provides the answer: (Average Monthly Consumption of Electricity x Average Retail Price of Electricity) + (Average Monthly Consumption of Natural Gas x Average Natural Gas Residential Prices) + [Average Fuel Price * (Average Monthly Vehicle Miles Traveled / Average Car Consumption / Number of Drivers)] = Average Monthly Energy Bill Consumers Pay in Each State

WalletHub, described as “the social network for your wallet,” provides data to help readers “make smart financial decisions.” The site points out that “during the summer, when many Americans undergo major life transitions such as relocating to start a new job or start a family, the difference in energy costs among states becomes an important financial consideration.”  Connecticut ranks #49.