Commercial Lighting Rebates – FlexForce

A Colorado utility had offered their customers bonus lighting rebates for several years, but participation saw a sudden surge with a rapidly expanding industry segment: cannabis growers. Indoor grow operations rely heavily on high-intensity lighting systems, making them strong candidates for energy efficiency upgrades. Once growers recognized the savings opportunity, rebate applications surged—quickly filling the program pipeline and pushing budget allocations close to their limits.

While the increased participation was a sign of success, the utility needed to substantiate that upgrades were actually installed and delivering energy savings. To ensure the integrity of the program, they launched a verification effort to confirm that rebated lighting systems were installed as claimed. The utility also needed to know that the facilities remained operational, amid an industry full of turnover and business closings.

On-Site Inspections

In fall 2024, the utility hired Michaels Energy and another vendor to conduct on-site inspections of grow-lighting rebate projects. The initial scope included roughly 20 customer sites, with results required before the end of the year.

Through FlexForce, Michaels Energy’s on-demand program support offering, the team was able to mobilize quickly and begin site inspections almost immediately.

Early findings revealed deeper challenges within the market. In several cases:

• Lighting equipment could not be verified on site
• Facilities had shut down after receiving rebates
• Ownership changes made verification difficult
• Installed equipment appeared to have been relocated

Because the cannabis industry experiences frequent acquisitions and closures, these conditions created risks for rebate verification and program accountability. Based on the speed and quality of the initial audits, the utility expanded the project significantly.

Scaling the Effort

What began as a small pilot quickly grew into a statewide verification initiative, with Michaels Energy completing 108 on-site audit inspections across Colorado. These sites were located throughout the state, some well outside of the Denver metro area, requiring extensive travel and careful coordination. Engineers traveled up to eight hours to reach remote facilities.

FlexForce made it possible to scale the effort quickly by deploying staff from multiple regions. Michaels Energy scheduled clusters of audits so engineers could complete multiple site visits in one trip. Additionally, we brought staff from Chicago to Denver for week-long audit deployments, and leveraged outreach staff in Iowa and Denver to support remote scheduling and coordination. This flexible staffing approach allowed the team to expand capacity quickly while keeping the project on schedule and within budget.

Maintaining Program Integrity and Results

Auditors conducted detailed verification at each site to confirm that rebate requirements were met. This included confirming installation of the rebated lighting equipment, operational status of the facility, and alignment between project documentation and site conditions. In some cases, auditors had to verify that growing activities were currently taking place to meet rebate eligibility requirements.

These findings helped the utility identify potential program loopholes and strengthen eligibility requirements. Through the 108 completed audits, Michaels was able to provide them with valuable insights to influence and improve program operations. Ultimately, they implemented a new requirement that grow-lighting rebates be audited before incentive payments are issued. Following the success of the Colorado effort, the utility expanded this approach to additional markets, including Minnesota.