Recurve and Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), California's largest utility, have officially launched a first-of-it's-kind Market Access Program. 

Market Access is a statewide demand-side initiative that aims to increase summer grid resilience by reducing and shifting energy use at peak times. It arose as a result of a California Public Utility Commission (CPUC) proceeding in which the commission asked all agencies to develop solutions for the state's summer energy shortfall in response to Governor Newsom's Statewide Summer Reliability Emergency.

Modeled after the groundbreaking FLEXmarket platform developed by Recurve and MCE, PG&E's Market Access program is enhanced to deliver significant peak savings by paying substantially more for reductions in the summer during the 4–9 p.m. peak period.

Because of its size and scope, PG&E's Market Access program represents an important step forward in California's decarbonization initiative. It aligns incentives for all parties by reducing grid stress and lowering customer energy costs, while also providing new opportunities for efficiency and flexibility aggregators to create highly cost-effective EE projects for the value they’re providing to the grid and end-use consumers.

Does your business reduce or shift summer peak loads? To determine if your efficiency, demand response, or other demand flexibility projects are eligible for participation in the Market Access Program, estimate how much you could get paid, or learn how to enroll and track projects, visit our Market Access portal. 

Are you interested in submitting projects to one of our other FLEXmarket programs? Schedule a call with one of our experts to learn more. 

What is Market Access?

In response to California's 2022 forecasted 4.4 GW electric capacity shortfall and Governor Gavin Newsom's Emergency Proclamation, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has approved the creation of a new statewide Market Access program to deliver peak or net peak demand savings to improve summer grid reliability.

Modeled after the FLEXmarket created by Recurve and MCE, Market Access allocates $150 million over the next two years to quickly scale behind-the-meter resources to reduce demand at peak times and avoid power interruptions like those the State experienced in the summer of 2020. The program leverages the capabilities of a wide range of vendors.

Market Access Programs measure savings based on Normalized Metered Energy Consumption (NMEC) and pay aggregators for verified performance, with a bonus for reducing and shifting loads saving energy during the summer peak (4–9 p.m.). Because of this, Market Access Programs can be more lucrative than traditional efficiency or demand response programs. And, because they pay for metered performance, Market Access Programs can open the door for a wide range of innovative business models to join. Schedule a call with one of our Market Access Specialists to learn more.

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*PG&E" refers to Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation. ©2022 Pacific Gas and Electric Company. This energy efficiency program is funded by California utility customers and administered through PG&E under the auspices of the California Public Utilities Commission. The program is implemented and managed by Recurve and their authorized representatives. "PG&E" is a registered trademark of PG&E Corporation. PG&E is not responsible for any other content, names, or marks in these programs. C46540-0722