Progress Energy's EnergyWise Program

I came across this program recently and thought it was interesting. Details can be found at Progress's website.

At no cost to you, Progress Energy installs a small device, usually in the garage, that is connected to selected electric equipment such as your water heater and your central heating and cooling system.

This device makes it possible for Progress Energy to temporarily reduce the energy consumption if our community experiences an unusually high power demand. If that happens, Progress Energy can send a signal to selected appliances of any of the more than 400,000 EnergyWise participants to cycle power off and on to reduce the overall energy demand.