Off-peak thermal storage improves customer/utility load factor. [Megatherm system testing by Public Service of New Hampshire]

Public Service of New Hampshire is convinced that electrically heated, thermal storage systems can save the company considerable money in deferred capital expense and can help increase the company's return on investment through an improved system load factor. To date the company, by virtue of 15 thermal storage installations, has been able to shift about 8500 kW of potential on-peak demand to actual off-peak consumption. This kilowatt figure is about one percent of the New Hampshire utility's peak load and a load factor improvement that could save considerably in purchase power costs the first year to benefit both utility and customer. James F. O'Malley, director of marketing for PSNH, explained that, ''The only sizable controllable load in a commercial facility is the building's heat and hot water requirements. If all that thermal energy can be supplied by a system that consumes only electric energy during off-peak hours, a rather large block of electric energy can be moved from our daily peak hours to the off-peak night hours. We are presently testing the Megatherm thermal storing system in 15 installations around New Hampshire and are excited about the result so far.''