center for partnerships & innovation

Energy Customers

Demand Flexibility

Advances in highly efficient building system technologies, energy storage, onsite power generation, and internet-connected and artificial intelligence-enabled building and grid control technologies are leading to great opportunities for Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings (GEB). Sophisticated energy system controls and smart consumer technologies allow for two-way power flows and flexible management of both electricity demand and supply to improve the performance and service offerings of buildings and the electric power system.

NARUC has partnered with the U.S. Department of Energy and National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO) to educate state regulators and energy officials about GEB opportunities and support grid access to GEB benefits. The NASEO-NARUC GEB State Working Group is open to all NARUC and NASEO members. It is composed of commissions, energy offices, and/or consumer counsels from 16 states.

Quick Links

Webinar: Determining Utility System Value of Demand Flexibility From Grid-interactive Efficient Buildings, April 6, 2020

NASEO: Roadmapping: A Tool for States to Advance Load Flexibility and Grid-interactive Efficient Buildings, November 2019

NASEO: Grid-interactive Efficient Buildings: State Briefing Paper, October 2019

NASEO-NARUC Grid Interactive Efficient Buildings State Working Group

 

Resources

  • Demand Flexibility within a Performance-Based Regulatory Framework, January 2023
    The jointly formed National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO)-National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings (GEBs) Working Group released the report Roadmapping: A Tool for States to Advance Load Flexibility and Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings in 2021. The 2021 report explored various tools available for states to advance load flexibility and GEBs, aimed at State Energy Offices, Public Utility Commissions (PUCs), and other state and local agencies. This paper builds on past insights with a closer examination of demand flexibility (DF) barriers and implementation within a performance-based regulatory framework. As more complex forms of DF are introduced, regulatory frameworks can capture the impacts and potential benefits of new demand-side technologies. Specifically, this paper examines regulatory strategies that may be useful for state regulators seeking to advance DF and GEB policies.
  • Demand Flexibility and Grid-interactive Efficient Buildings 101, September 2022
  • DOE: Performance Assessments of Demand Flexibility from Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings: Issues and Considerations, July 2020
    This SEE Action Network report explains basic concepts and fundamental considerations for assessing the actual demand flexibility performance of buildings participating in demand flexibility programs and responding to time-varying retail rates. Demand flexibility is the capability of distributed energy resources (DERs) to adjust a building’s load profile across different timescales. Assessments determine the timing, location, quantity, and quality of grid services provided.
  • DOE: Determining Utility System Value of Demand Flexibility From Grid-interactive Efficient Buildings, April, 2020
    This State and Local Energy Efficiency Action Network (SEE Action) paper focuses on ways current methods and practices that establish the value of distributed energy resource (DER) investments to electric utility systems can be enhanced. These enhancements would improve analyses of the value of demand flexibility in grid-interactive efficient buildings (GEBs) that can provide grid services. The report introduces key valuation concepts that are applicable to demand flexibility and links to other documents that describe these concepts and their implementation in more detail. The authors offered a webinar synopsis of the paper on April 6, 2020. The full report is available.View presentation.
  • DOE: Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings: An Introduction for State and Local Governments, April 2020
    This report from the State and Local Energy Efficiency Action Network introduces grid-interactive efficient buildings and demand flexibility; provides an overview of trends, challenges, and opportunities; and discusses how to assess the performance and value of demand flexibility. A companion webinar discusses key takeaways from the report.
  • NASEO: Considerations for Grid-interactive Efficient Buildings (GEB) Pilot Projects, December 2019
    This paper outlines some factors and issues that states, localities, utilities, building owners, energy service providers, and other stakeholders should consider in contemplating grid-interactive efficient building pilot project development.
  • NASEO: Roadmapping: A Tool for States to Advance Load Flexibility and Grid-interactive Efficient Buildings, November 2019
    This document discusses various actions that states and sometimes localities can take to advance their opportunities to benefit from grid-interactive efficient buildings (GEBs). It then suggests steps states should consider in developing a GEB roadmap.
  • NASEO: Grid-interactive Efficient Buildings: State Briefing Paper, October 2019
    This document provides a brief overview of the core aspects of a grid-interactive efficient building (GEB) and related flexible load management topics to help states and other stakeholders discern benefits of and challenges to demand flexibility. Demand flexibility can help states meet such objectives as affordability, cost containment and economic growth; energy reliability and resilience; and environmental stewardship.
  • Webinar: NASEO-NARUC Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings Working Group: GEB and Automated Demand Response, April 10, 2019
    Under the auspices of the NASEO-NARUC Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings (GEB) Working Group, NASEO hosted a webinar to discuss grid challenges and opportunities and the capability of buildings to provide grid services. The webinar will review recent studies and field data, offer a grid needs framework, discuss the complementarity of energy efficiency with demand response, and cover the status of demand response automation technology, metrics, and related efforts.
  • National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO)’s compilation of GEB Resources