By Kiara Doyal, The Seattle Medium
As Seattle begins to reach peak temperatures, Puget Sound Energy (PSE) urges participation in its Flex events as part of its strategy to balance grid demand, keep costs down, and promote cleaner energy use.
When energy demand spikes during critical times, like the current heatwave, PSE initiates Flex events that allow customers to help manage the energy grid by cutting back or shifting their usage during peak hours.
“We’re asking people not to use energy during a certain time. And no, that doesn’t mean completely turn off everything and sit in the heat and dark,” said Gerald Tracy Puget Sound Energy Media Engagement Program Manager. “Just turning your AC from 72 to 75 for a few hours, not doing your laundry during that time period, or maybe not charging your EV vehicle during that time period.”
PSE’s main goal is to avoid reaching peak energy demand on the days we would categorize as severe weather. According to Tracy, during these days, we typically see more people at home, utilizing their air conditioning and being on the internet more.
“We are trying to keep us from having to use other generating sources and reaching that peak demand. Because if you reach the peak, we might have to turn on another facility that we are not using at the moment, which could be more expensive, and that is something customers do end up seeing on their bills,” said Tracy. “Overall, we are trying to avoid more costs for everybody involved.”
The Flex events this summer come on the heels of 20 very successful Flex events during the winter.
“We saw more than 600,000 customers partake in the Flex events, and we actually had an event that surpassed our goal of saving 86 megawatts, and saved 86.9,” said Tracy.
While Flex events can take place during both hot and cold months, Tracy said that participation is completely voluntary, with each customer receiving an email explaining how to be part of the event.
“There are specific days and times where they can occur, it is not for an entire day. They generally last from two to three hours,” said Tracy. “We’re not telling people what they need to do, we are asking them to help and when we get the collective as a group to go towards on positive goal, we see this helping everybody.”
“These events lower the potential for brownouts, blackouts, or system instability when demand does exceed supply capacity, higher operational costs,” he continued.
Aside from helping keep costs down and promoting cleaner energy use, PSE’s Flex programs offer various rewards and incentives for customers who reduce their energy usage during peak demand events (Flex events). These programs include Flex Rewards, Flex Smart, Flex EV, and Flex Batteries, each with its own set of incentives.
“We have about 92,000 customers who are enrolled in incentive-based programs, where they earn rebates here and there and even some initial sign-up rewards through different programs,” said Tracy. “You can earn sign-up bonuses, annual bonuses, usage reduction rewards, and enter to win gift card drawings.”
Tracy encouraged customers to take part in Flex events, explaining that participation not only supports PSE but also helps keep energy costs down for everyone.
“Think about it,” Tracy said. “Instead of running your dishwasher between 5 and 7 p.m. when everyone is home, run it overnight. These times are a high demand, and if we reach that peak, PSE turns on another facility,” said Tracy. “And that is a cost that is coming to the customer. Flex events keep us from raising prices on customers even further.”
Flex events benefit the whole community. Everybody wants to utilize energy during the hot Seattle summers, so why not work together to shed a little bit?
“It helps the greater good. It saves both people and PSE from spending any money in the future,” said Tracy. “By avoiding the potential of having to face what comes with having peak demand, we are just trying to protect the system before we even have to protect the system.”
