The big concern I have continues to center around economic class. The economic elites will be untouched by any form of demand response programs. OTOH, the poor will be most harmed. The United States needs energy abundance, not programs that create and normalize energy poverty.
Regrettably, California is a pioneer in creating energy poverty with the highest electricity rates in the continental U.S. Note this sad fact as well: "The [California] poverty rate rose from 11.7% in fall 2021 to 13.2% in the first quarter of 2023, according to the California Poverty Measure (CPM), a research effort by PPIC and the Stanford Center on Poverty and Inequality that accounts for housing costs and safety net benefits." [California is the most populous state. The population of California in 2020 was 39,503,200. In in 2023 it was 38,965,193, a loss of over 1/2 million. The high cost of living is the most likely driver.]
"The vast majority said a good feeling knowing they were helping to prevent a blackout."
Silly people. Why do they feel good about helping the utility turn the USA into a third world cesspit?
"One has to ask what became of the obligation to serve that was at the heart of utility operation for over a century."
Yes. We need to get the focus of utilities back to that obligation. But I don't know how....
The big concern I have continues to center around economic class. The economic elites will be untouched by any form of demand response programs. OTOH, the poor will be most harmed. The United States needs energy abundance, not programs that create and normalize energy poverty.
Regrettably, California is a pioneer in creating energy poverty with the highest electricity rates in the continental U.S. Note this sad fact as well: "The [California] poverty rate rose from 11.7% in fall 2021 to 13.2% in the first quarter of 2023, according to the California Poverty Measure (CPM), a research effort by PPIC and the Stanford Center on Poverty and Inequality that accounts for housing costs and safety net benefits." [California is the most populous state. The population of California in 2020 was 39,503,200. In in 2023 it was 38,965,193, a loss of over 1/2 million. The high cost of living is the most likely driver.]
This 2018 report by Lawrence Berkeley Labs and Nexant establishes that the significant costs of unreliablity are borne by large enterprises instead of residential customers. https://live-lbl-eta-publications.pantheonsite.io/sites/default/files/interruption_cost_estimate_guidebook_final2_9july2018.pdf Note the default California values in the Interruption Cost Estimator (ICE) https://icecalculator.com/home clarifies this point. The 2016 cost per sustained event for residential customers was $15.48. Contrast that with the $40,919.41 cost per sustained event for medium and large businesses.
Great stuff -- a very informative introduction to the VPP concept!