Participants in Pecan Street, a smart grid initiative in Austin, Texas, will be eligible for discounts on Chevrolet Volt plug-in cars and will be offered deals on other energy efficient "smart appliances" so researchers can test how these products impact electricity consumption, The New York Times reported.

According to the Times, Texas is at the forefront of smart grid projects thanks in large part to deregulation of its electricity market, which incentivized providers to compete with each other by offering consumers novel ways of tracking and paying for power.

Donna Nelson, chairwoman of the state's public utility commission, told the Times that the number of smart meters tracking residential electricity use in deregulated parts of the state will number well above 4 million by the end of 2012.

Smart grid programs not only allow consumers to track their usage habits in order to save money, but provide researchers with valuable if sometimes mysterious data. For example, the Pecan Street project has revealed that springtime electricity use is lowest on Thursdays, though the reasons why are unclear, according to the Times.

Texas both produces and uses more electricity than any other state and also leads the nation in wind power generation, the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported.