[Federal Register: January 27, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 17)]
[Notices]
[Page 3907-3908]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr27ja04-52]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products: Representative
Average Unit Costs of Energy
AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Department of
Energy.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In this notice, the Department of Energy (DOE or Department)
is forecasting the representative average unit costs of five
residential energy sources for the year 2004 pursuant to the Energy
Policy and Conservation Act. The five sources are electricity, natural
gas, No. 2 heating oil, propane, and kerosene.
EFFECTIVE DATE: The representative average unit costs of energy
contained in this notice will become effective February 26, 2004 and
will remain in effect until further notice.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Samuel Johnson, U.S. Department of
Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Forrestal
Building, Mail Station EE-2J, 1000 Independence Avenue, SW.,
Washington, DC 20585-0121, (202) 586-0854, sam.johnson@ee.doe.gov.
Francine Pinto, Esq., U.S. Department of Energy, Office of General
Counsel, Forrestal Building, Mail Station GC-72, 1000 Independence
Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585-0103, (202) 586-7432,
francine.pinto@hq.doe.gov.
Thomas DePriest, Esq., U.S. Department of Energy, Office of General
Counsel, Forrestal Building, Mail Station GC-72, 1000 Independence
Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585-0103, (202) 586-2946,
thomas.depriest@hq.doe.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 323 of the Energy Policy and
Conservation Act (Act) (42 U.S.C. 6291-6309) requires that DOE
prescribe test procedures for the determination of the estimated annual
operating costs or other measures of energy consumption for certain
consumer products specified in the Act. (42 U.S.C. 6293(b)(4)) These
test procedures are found in 10 CFR part 430, subpart B.
Section 323(b) of the Act requires that the estimated annual
operating costs of a covered product be calculated from measurements of
energy use in a representative average use cycle or period of use and
from representative average unit costs of the energy needed to operate
such product during such cycle. (42 U.S.C. 6293(b)) The section further
requires that DOE provide information to manufacturers regarding the
representative average unit costs of energy. (42 U.S.C. 6293(b)(4))
This cost information should be used by manufacturers to meet their
obligations under section 323 of the Act. Most notably, these costs are
used to comply with Federal Trade Commission (FTC) requirements for
labeling. Manufacturers are required to use the revised DOE
representative average unit costs when the FTC publishes new ranges of
comparability for specific covered products, 16 CFR part 305.
Interested members of the public can also find information covering the
FTC labeling requirements at http://www.ftc.gov/appliances.
The Department last published representative average unit costs of
residential energy for use in the Energy Conservation Program for
Consumer Products Other Than Automobiles on April 9, 2003 (68 FR
17361). Effective February 26, 2004, the cost figures published on
April 9, 2003, will be superseded by the cost figures set forth in this
notice.
The Department's Energy Information Administration (EIA) developed
the representative average unit after-tax costs set forth in this
notice. The representative average unit after-tax costs for
electricity, natural gas, No. 2 heating oil, and propane are based on
simulations used to produce the September 2003, EIA Short-Term Energy
Outlook, and reflect the mid-price scenario. The representative average
unit after-tax costs for kerosene are derived from EIA's prices
relative to that of heating oil, based on 1998-2002 averages for these
two fuels. The source for these price data is the August 2003, Monthly
Energy Review DOE/EIA-0035(2003/08). The Short-Term Energy Outlook and
the Monthly Energy Review are available at the National Energy
Information Center, Forrestal Building, Room 1F-048, 1000 Independence
Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20585, (202) 586-8800. These publications
also can be found on the EIA Web site at http://www.eia.doe.gov.
The 2004 representative average unit costs of energy under section
323(b)(4) of the Act are set forth in Table 1, and will become
effective February 26, 2004. They will remain in effect until further
notice.
Issued in Washington, DC, on January 22, 2004.
David K. Garman,
Assistant Secretary, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.
Table 1.--Representative Average Unit Costs of Energy for Five
Residential Energy Sources (2004)
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Per
Type of energy million In commonly As required by
Btu \1\ used terms test procedure
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Electricity.................. $25.20 8.60[cent]/kWh $.0860/kWh
\2,3\.
Natural Gas.................. 9.10 91.0[cent]/ .00000910/Btu
therm \4\ or
$9.35/MCF
\5,6\
No. 2 Heating Oil............ 9.23 $1.28/gallon .00000923/Btu
\7\.
Propane...................... 13.46 $1.23/gallon .00001346/Btu
\8\.
[[Page 3908]]
Kerosene..................... 11.41 $1.54/gallon .00001141/Btu
\9\.
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\1\ Btu stands for British thermal units.
\2\ kWh stands for kilowatt hour.
\3\ 1 kWh = 3,412 Btu.
\4\ 1 therm = 100,000 Btu. Natural gas prices include taxes.
\5\ MCF stands for 1,000 cubic feet.
\6\ For the purposes of this table, one cubic foot of natural gas has an
energy equivalence of 1,028 Btu.
\7\ For the purposes of this table, one gallon of No. 2 heating oil has
an energy equivalence of 138,690 Btu.
\8\ For the purposes of this table, one gallon of liquid propane has an
energy equivalence of 91,333 Btu.
\9\ For the purposes of this table, one gallon of kerosene has an energy
equivalence of 135,000 Btu.
[FR Doc. 04-1646 Filed 1-26-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P