The National Energy Improvement Fund (NEIF) made a splash in the northeast a few weeks back at a Heating Electrification Workshop hosted by Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships (NEEP). In attendance — representing NEIF — was Jensen Handwork, Senior Director of Program Development.

The two-day workshop held in Syracuse, New York, welcomed various utility program managers, program implementers, policymakers, and other industry leaders for thoughtful discussions surrounding the topic of electrification. More specifically: group discussions centered around the adoption of heat pump technology and market transformation in the northeast.

Electrification, as defined by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), is an “emerging economy-wide decarbonization strategy” that is beginning to have real impacts on the electric power industry. The process of electrification essentially replaces devices and technologies that rely on fossil fuels with electrically powered equivalents (such as electric vehicles or, in this case, heat pumps). 

There are many perceived benefits of electrification, including lower carbon emissions, greater energy (and cost) savings, as well as greater grid flexibility, according to the DOE. 

During last week’s workshop, Handwork had the opportunity to collaborate and share heat pump knowledge with others in the industry. At the end of night one, conference attendees were encouraged to keep the conversation and camaraderie flowing at NEEP’s Dinner Club, where Handwork’s group was given the chance to experience the popular Syracuse Dinosaur Bar-B-Que.