Smart Grid Policy Statement
The COMPETE Coalition supports well-structured electricity markets that promote innovation and produce measurable consumer benefits. Whether at the wholesale or retail level, competitive markets encourage the innovative solutions required to meet America's electricity needs and environmental objectives. Competitive markets encourage price transparency and economic investments where investors, not ratepayers, appropriately bear the financial risk.
The motivation around smart grid implementation is similar to the issues that ushered in competition in wholesale and retail markets for electricity – lack of innovation and measurable accountability for system performance. For the smart grid, these issues are beneficial and visible at the end-user and energy provider levels where demand response, energy storage, and distributed generation are sourced, and where electric and natural gas vehicle transportation systems primarily operate.
Across the nation, the electric grid is being modernized with new technologies. Yet, the success of the smart grid will ultimately be measured by the level of innovation, consumer engagement, and the measurable benefits created that cost-effectively support efficiency and reliability. Competitive markets foster innovation in the electric and gas industries, creating new products and services. We believe that competitive markets will provide the best environment for the implementation of new technology, clean energy, and carbon reduction strategies.
Based on these and other observations, COMPETE advocates the following principles to support competition in the markets for power, distribution system technology, and services that promote a smarter, more efficient power system:
1. Competition has and will lead to innovation in technology and services.
Experience has consistently demonstrated that competition breeds innovative solutions to energy and environmental needs through advances in energy efficiency, demand response, energy storage, energy information, and distribution system technology. These innovations can bring consumers direct and immediate benefits, both in terms of cost savings and access to new products and services.
2. Consumers should have access to transparent price signals.
Technology can be a key enabler for innovative market designs that benefit all consumers through allowing direct action by consumers to reduce energy bills, produce actionable benchmark data, and provide a cornerstone for energy efficiency and distributed generation strategies. Policy makers should encourage competitive markets that produce transparent price signals and allow consumers to leverage technologies and services appropriate for their needs - whether residential, commercial, or industrial. Policy makers should ensure that the technology deployed by proactive customers, utilities, ISO’s, and other parties is accessible and interoperable. The risk of these investments should be borne by investors and businesses, not ratepayers.
3. Energy usage data is a fundamental input to energy management services.
Policies should ensure that consumers have access to their own energy usage information so they can use it to meet their needs. Both current and historic energy information are fundamental components of energy information services. Policy makers should pursue consistent, transparent rules for making customer data accessible to the customer and service providers of their choice.
4. Consumers should have access to their information and control over how their information is used and shared.
Because smart grid applications and services may rely on information that is private, personal, and proprietary, policy makers should establish reasonable privacy policies that protect consumer data. These policies should identify basic uses and establish consent requirements for any additional use or sharing of customer data with service providers. Consumer protection and regulation of energy information should be consistent nationally and based on industry standards.
5. Consumers should have the option to become market participants.
Consumers should be empowered to become market participants in a diverse power market that provides an array of products and services to meet individual customer needs. Toward this end, competitive market suppliers can provide consumers with different product and service options that leverage technology to fit their individual needs.
The COMPETE Coalition looks forward to working with policy makers and market participants to ensure that the growing portfolio of smart grid technologies is implemented in a manner that supports the further development and improvement of well-structured, organized power markets, promotes customer innovation, and produces measurable, consumer benefits.
