California Demand Side Grid Support (DSGS) Program Exceeds 500 MW
Image courtesy of Michael Kappel under Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 Generic Deed, resized to 700 x 391 pixels.
California’s demand side grid support program (DSGS) has grown by leaps and bounds, now encompassing a whopping 515 MW of capacity across 265k participants – and growing. The program is part of the state’s Strategic Reliability Reserve of backup energy resources, which kicks in when demand is high during climate extremes and similar events.
Nuts and Bolts of California’s DSGS Program
The program was launched in Aug. 2022, and it runs from May through October of each year. It provides incentives for participating customers to either reduce their energy use when necessary or transmit power back into the grid. Included in the program is one of the largest virtual power plants (VPPs) in the U.S. (SunRun’s CalReady which has a capacity greater than 200 MW).
Participants are paid based on the net load reduction they provide, with some participants earning $2 for each kWh of electricity they send to the grid. During a 10-day heatwave in Sept. 2022, the program helped slash approximately 3,000 MWh of demand. For 2024 (as of the time of this writing in November), the DSGS program has been successfully activated 17 times across 4 separate heatwaves.
The DSGS software provider is Leap, which recently announced the launch of a new DSGS service for energy storage technologies. Leap also worked with the state to help develop the initial program requirements and guidelines. Another company, OhmConnect, participated in 2 pilots to help California get the DSGS program off the ground.
I really like what California is doing here. It’s the right move for a state that has been hammered in recent years by extreme heat, drought, wildfires, and similar nastiness. By tapping into demand-side resources, these extreme conditions can be better managed to promote grid reliability. There’s no doubt about it, California’s DSGS program works and it is something that other states in vulnerable regions should strive to emulate if possible.
