Partnership between PG&E and Sunrun yields successful first, clean seasonal summer reliability program

The Energy Efficiency Summer Reliability Program, also known as the Peak Power Reward program, enrolled 8,500 customers of Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) last summer and fall, offering an average of 27 MW for more than 90 consecutive days.

It was made possible through a first of its kind partnership with Sunrun, a clean energy subscription service. While 27 MW was its average, it managed to peak at nearly 32 MW from solar plus storage residential systems.

“The Peak Power Rewards program achieved a customer participation rate and power supply volume that’s never been accomplished before,” Mary Powell, Sunrun CEO, said. “PG&E was able to confidently rely on the renewing daily resource of Sunrun’s fleet of home solar and storage systems. We are rapidly transitioning to a storage-first company and the results of this partnership highlight the unique capability that distributed power plants provide communities.”

Their efforts allowed for power to supply more than 20,000 homes, utilizing a fleet of home batteries like most utilities would use a centralized, traditional power plant. Unlike the needs of a power plant, though, the whole program was up and running within six months, due to a lack of construction needs. Basically, every day from August through October the enrolled battery systems would discharge energy back onto the grid between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. Participating customers in turn received $750 and a free smart thermostat upfront.

In this way, Sunrun and PG&E turned customers’ batteries into a networked, distributed power plant.

“Working together with partners like Sunrun is a win-win-win for our customers, the electric grid and California as a whole,” Patti Poppe, CEO of PG&E Corporation, said. “Solar-plus-storage plays a significant role in California’s clean energy future and we’re proud of our customers who are leading the charge with their clean energy adoption. Every day, we’re looking at new and better ways to deliver for our hometowns while ensuring safety, reliability and resiliency for our customers.”

Sunrun and PG&E have also signaled the exploration of potential additional programs for customers and resiliency in-state.