• Siemens Particpates in UtilityDemand Response Pilot

    June 28, 2011
    The DRWMP program allows electricity customers to bid Demand Response directly into the California wholesale electric market, via the regulated utility

    Siemens Industry, Inc. today announced that it is among the first participants in the Demand Response Wholesale Market Pilot (DRWMP) in San Diego Gas & Electric’s service territory. The DRWMP program allows electricity customers to bid Demand Response (DR) directly into the California wholesale electric market, via the regulated utility, provided they are equipped with technology enabling them to meet certain performance and telemetry requirements.

    Siemens helps its customers participate in the DRWMP as a load aggregator through SureGrid™, the company’s Intelligent Load Management solution. SureGrid uses a cloud-computing platform connected to web-enabled building controls to present load characteristics to wholesale electricity markets that are equivalent to traditional gas or coal-fired peaking power plants. The Siemens solution bundles and presents to the utility a portfolio of aggregated end-user loads so customers can be bid directly into California’s wholesale energy market and compete directly against physical electricity generating assets.

    “SureGrid was designed to enable utilities and building operators to fully leverage advanced forms of Demand Response such as the DRWMP,” says Colin Bester, Director for Siemens Retail and Commercial Systems. “We have been refining and improving the SureGrid platform for several years and it is gratifying to be among the first to participate in the California wholesale market with virtual generation. We look forward to using this program to further prove our ability to deliver a highly reliable energy source in a cost-effective, carbon-negative manner.”

    Demand Response, had been undervalued as a grid management resource, potentially risky for commercial customers because it was perceived as unreliable, non-verifiable and one-way. With the DRWMP, temporary load reduction events for participating buildings will now largely be based on which electricity resource has the lowest price at any given moment in time, regardless of whether or not the resource is an actual power plant or a virtual one provided by DR. Siemens SureGrid platform automatically monitors building operating conditions and occupancy in real time based on pre-defined business rules, which optimizes load shedding and shifting while maintaining comfortable interior environments for occupants at each location. Using networked energy meters installed at each building, the Siemens aggregation engine combines a variety of different building types into a single virtual portfolio, providing a real-time aggregation of load data that is transmitted to the California ISO. As part of utility participation requirements, SureGrid responds to load dispatch requests with virtually no notice, an ability proven during San Diego Gas & Electric’s DRWMP predecessor, the Participating Load Pilot program.

    Through industry-leading technology and services, Siemens Retail and Commercial Systems helps companies achieve energy efficiency and Smart Consumption goals while simultaneously creating a more comfortable environment for customers and employees. Siemens Retail & Commercial Systems solutions employ advanced automation technologies to manage heating, ventilation, air conditioning, cooling and lighting applications as well as other critical energy loads. Our cloud computing platform provides enterprise visibility and control, creating sustainable reductions in operating costs and carbon emissions.

    For more information: http://www.usa.siemens.com/rcs.