To qualify for Eco Shift the following requirements must be met:

For participants:

• Be a Nova Scotia Power customer
• Be on a residential or commercial rate code. Customers on the Time-of-Day are not eligible.. Please view our Terms and Conditions for details. We are accepting Nova Scotia Power Time-Varying Pricing Rate Pilot (Critical Peak Pricing and Time-of-Use) participants this season (December 2024 – February 2025) as a pilot phase for Eco Shift. Program parameters may change based on learnings.
• Be the authorized name on a Nova Scotia Power account.
• Must accept the Terms and Conditions of the program.
• Must own an eligible device(s) which are:

Other requirements:

• Device should be owned by participant
• Home which the device is installed should be electrically powered
• Device should commonly be in operation from December through February,
• Device should be consistently connected to the internet.
• Device should not be actively participating in and/or receiving recurring incentives from an existing Efficiency Nova Scotia demand response program.

Demand response is a way to balance electricity supply and demand by adjusting customer energy usage. To do this, a demand response event can be called during peak energy usage periods.

Eco Shift is an Efficiency Nova Scotia Demand Response Program. It’s a voluntary program that rewards you for reducing your electricity use during periods of high demand.

During an event, your enrolled device(s) will automatically respond as follows:

• Thermostats- adjust their temperature slightly
• Elective Vehicle (EV) and Chargers pause charging
• Home batteries – discharge
• Water heater controllers – adjust heating process based on usage patterns.

For some electric vehicles, charging settings are not automatic. In these cases, you may receive a notification of an event and be asked to voluntarily pause charging for the event period.

This program will help shift your energy use away from peak demand times, like on very cold weather days when many people are using their heating, to times when there is less demand on the grid. As a participant you can help support Nova Scotia’s transition to a cleaner and greener grid.

Participants agree to take part in events lasting up to 4 hours, between Monday and Friday typically in the morning, or in the evening. You can anticipate at least one event, and a maximum of up to 12 events throughout a season.

However, participants who are identified as being on Nova Scotia Power’s Critical Peak Pricing Rate Pilot, based on the utility account number provided in the Eco Shift enrollment form, will be considered part of the pilot 2024/2025 season (December to February) to test alignment of device control with your Critical Peak Events, therefore your Eco Shift events may have events differing from above. They’ll be notified of event details through email.

Participants enrolled in Eco Shift with smart thermostats, EV/EV chargers and home batteries will receive a notification a day before via email and SMS, with the option to opt-out of SMS after enrollment. Some device manufacturers may also provide in-app notifications.

Participants with hot water controllers will not be notified when events are called. These devices make minor adjustments to the water heater which should be unnoticed in the home.

Nothing! Participants can opt out at any time. Registered devices will be turned down or charging will be paused during demand response events and will resume normal operation following the events.

For some EVs, charging settings are not automatic. In these cases, you may receive a notification of an event and be asked to voluntarily pause charging for the event period.

• Your enrolled smart thermostat(s) will automatically reduce their temperature slightly during an event. We may pre-heat 30 minutes before the event starts to maintain your comfort during the duration of the event.
• Home batteries will discharge during an event if the state of charge is greater than 20%
• Water heater controllers will monitor energy usage of your electric water heater and adjust its heating process to reduce energy usage during an event, without impacting your hot water availability.
• Your enrolled EV(s) will pause charging (if the current state of charge is above 50%), and EV charger(s) will charge at a reduce charging rate, during an event.

Note: For some EVs, charging settings are not automatic. In these cases, you may receive a reminder notification to voluntarily pause charging before the event starts.

No, we cannot shut down or lockout your device. We will make small adjustments to the enrolled device’s operation during specified demand response events. The participant can override and opt out at any time.

At all times, the participant has ultimate control of their device or EV and can opt-out anytime. A participant may manually override an event through the following actions:

• Smart thermostat: changing their settings either on the device itself or through the device specific application.
• EV or EV charger: unplugging the vehicle from the EV charger and plugging it back in.
• Battery: opt out through the device specific application (Device App).
• Water heater controller: press “SET” button on the device to opt out. A green indicator light on the device will confirm if an event is ongoing. The Green light should flash, once opted out.

Click here to see our list of eligible devices.

If you believe you qualify for the program, and are interested in participating, please complete the enrollment form to apply for the program and enroll your devices.

Some device types will require you to login to the manufacturer apps/accounts during sign-up. In these cases, you may be directed to the appropriate login page after completing the program application form.

Qualifying electric vehicles must also have an active subscription with your vehicle manufacturer’s internet service app, which is often made available to owners at no or a low cost. You will be directed to the connection page, with sign-up information, during the program application process.

Creating a homeowner account is optional and is for this program only. Login details are unique to this account.

If you do decide to access this account, you will be able to see:

• • Which devices you have enrolled in the program
  • How many events have been run for your devices
  • Update account information

This account does NOT provide you with program enrollment status. Your account can be accessed while your application is being processed.

Mysa devices may show as “offline” in the Efficiency Nova Scotia Homeowner account even if your devices are connected to the internet. This is because device online/offline information for Mysa devices is not currently shared with this account.

Please note, details related domestic hot water controllers will not be available through this homeowner app.

You can choose to login to your account in two ways:

• Request a secure link sent to your registered email address. A new link must be requested with each sign-in. or
• Use a password. This can be created during your first sign-in by selecting “Forgot password”.

Eco Shift participants may receive two types of incentives:

• A one-time enrollment incentive per household or per first device after being accepted into the program; additional per device incentives are available to those who enroll multiple qualifying smart thermostats.
• A participation incentive at the end of each event season (December to February) for each device category that had confirmed enrollment and participated in the majority of the events throughout the season.

Enrolment incentives include:

* Incentives are subject to change from year to year

Enrollment incentives for initial enrolled devices will be processed within 10 business days following confirmation of program/device enrollment. Confirmation of program enrollment can be expected within 10 – 30 business days of applying for the program.

Smart thermostats, EVs, EV chargers and batteries: Participants will be issued a participation incentive in the Spring, following participation in each demand response season (December to February). Incentives for additional devices enrolled after initial enrolment may also be processed along with the end of season participation incentive in the Spring.

Water heater controllers: Participants will be issued a participation incentive in the Spring, following participation in each demand response season. Participants will receive a free water heater controller which will be installed at no cost by an EfficiencyOne installation partner.

Efficiency Nova Scotia is working with Nova Scotia Power and with a third party, CLEAResult, to administer certain elements of the program. We are also working with Virtual Peaker and Shifted Energy, who provide the software solutions that enables us to communicate with connected smart devices. Nova Scotia Power will be calling events for all devices.

You may receive responses to your email inquiries from either Efficiency Nova Scotia address (@efficiencyns.ca) or CLEAResult email address (@clearesult.com)

Some device types will require you to login to the manufacturer apps accounts during sign-up. In these cases, you will be directed to the appropriate login page after completing the program application form. EVs qualifying for automatic event control, must also have an active subscription with your vehicle manufacturer’s internet service app, which is often made available to owners at no or a low cost. You will be directed to the connection page, with sign-up information, during the program application process.

To administer the program, we need to collect participants’ name, address, Nova Scotia Power account number, phone number and email address. Enrolled devices will share setpoints, room temperature, serial numbers, usage, and state of charge (for EVs and home batteries). This information will be accessible to only Efficiency Nova Scotia and its implementation partners.

Efficiency Nova Scotia can only support eligible devices at this time, but we’d love to hear from you! Please email the pilot team at  ecoshift@efficiencyns.ca with the following details:

• Name
• Contact details (email and/or phone number)
• Postal code
• Device details:
  • Manufacturer
  • Brief device description (i.e. smart thermostat – electric heat, electric vehicle)

Efficiency Nova Scotia is not responsible for the purchase, installation, or maintenance of devices through Eco Shift. Please refer to the individual manufacturer for installation recommendations, or if your device was installed through a sister program of Efficiency Nova Scotia, please refer the respective program details.

If you have installed your device through another program of Efficiency Nova Scotia, please refer the respective program details or contact the program team for detail.

Smart thermostats and vehicle chargers can be purchased via the manufacturer’s website or many local and online retailers.

Electric vehicles are available through many local dealerships.

Please consult a qualified electrician on how to source and install a home battery storage system.

Efficiency Nova Scotia provides rebates on eligible smart thermostats and many other smart devices at participating locations, which you learn about on our Instant Savings page.

Please contact the device-specific manufacturer for troubleshooting support. You can contact the Efficiency Nova Scotia Eco Shift program team if you need support with participating in demand response events through the Eco Shift program by emailing ecoshift@efficiencyNS.ca

If you have more questions or decide you want to leave the program, contact our Energy Solutions Advisors. You can call them at 1-877-999-6035 or send an email to ecoshift@efficiencyns.ca.