Direct Energy Wants A Nest (Thermostat) In Every Home

Nest Labs Inc., the smart thermostat company, has partnered with a national electricity supplier to get their devices in more Connecticut homes.

The power company, Direct Energy, will offer the Nest Learning Thermostat for free to customers who enter into a electricity contract for a set period of time, with rates and length details still being worked out, said Direct Energy's head of strategy and acquisitions, Nick Henn.

"The fact that it gives control to customers, it allows them to think differently about how they use energy," Henn said in an interview.

The Nest promotion will be available in Connecticut, as well as the Direct Energy's other major markets, such as the Midwest, the Mid-Atlantic, Northeast and areas of Canada. Other power companies around the country, including ComEd, CPS Energy, nPower, and Columbia Gas of Ohio, also announced similar discount promotions.

Over time the thermostat learns customers' schedule and heating preferences. It adjusts temperature settings, for example, when the house is empty to reduce energy consumption. Nest says the thermostat can lower heating and cooling bills by 20 percent.

The company, founded by Apple engineers in 2010, was acquired in February by Google for $3.2 billion.

The Direct Energy offer comes as third-party energy suppliers are pushing more than ever for new customers. Companies can spend hundreds of dollars in advertisements and marketing to gain a single new customer.

But a promotion from a power company specifically targeted to lower energy use is something different.

"If you asked energy companies a few years ago, How do you feel about helping your customers use less energy? It would be a difficult conversation," Henn said.

The promotion fits, Henn said, into a larger effort to change the way people use power. As one example, in an effort to reduce power use during the week, when demand and prices are both higher, Direct Energy has in some markets instituted a free power Saturday.

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Direct Energy Wants A Nest (Thermostat) In Every Home