Mid-summer Observations About Shaving The Peak

The beginning of July marked record-breaking heat in Boston and Providence. These temperatures caused electricity demand to surge—known as peak demand events—as people ran their air conditioners to stay cool.

Peak demand events lead to an increase in both electricity prices and pollution due to the need to turn on more expensive and polluting power plants to meet electricity demand. To combat this, demand response initiatives like our Shave the Peak program and ConnectedSolutions (a program administered by Electric Distribution Companies in Rhode Island and Massachussetts) allow residents to stay informed and reduce their own electric use during peak hours.

The Acadia Center conducted an in-depth analysis of the grid impacts of the heat wave over the Fourth of July weekend and found that energy market savings driven by distributed solar on July 2 alone totaled $39-54 million.

To read the full blog from Green Energy Consumers Alliance, click here.