CAISO | FAQs

What is the AutoGrid FlexSaver program?

3. What is demand response?

Demand response (DR) is a type of program that encourages participants to reduce energy consumption when electricity use is anticipated to be much higher than the electricity grid can provide by either using smart, connected devices (e.g. thermostats, eV chargers) or reducing the energy usage by manually adjusting settings and use of systems and appliances at home.
Through timely communications, participants are asked to make these changes during Power Hours (energy reduction events) that typically occur during weekday evenings during the summer months when most people are home and using electricity, potentially leading to electric grid stresses.
By reducing energy use during these Power Hours, participants can save energy, earn incentives, and support the transition to more sustainable fuel sources.

What are the financial benefits to me if I enroll in the FlexSaver program?

What are the enrollment requirements?

11. Who can join this program?

Participants (18 years or older) who are an electricity customer (not just a gas customer) of PG&E. Participants may also be customers of Community Choice Aggregators (CCAs). Customers of municipal utilities or electric cooperatives, such as City of Palo Alto Utility (CPAU), Los Angeles Water and Power (LADWP), Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD), Modesto Irrigation District (MID), Anza Electric, or Glendale Water and Power (GWP), are not eligible.

Clean Power Alliance

If you are a CPA customer, join the program at https://cleanpoweralliance.org/power-response/

Sonoma Clean Power

If you are a SCP customer, join the SCP program at https://sonomacleanpower.org/programs/gridsavvyrewards

How can I participate?

How will my data be used and accessed?

17. How will my smart device(s) be used?

The usage depends on the device as follows:

Smart thermostats: Your residence will be cooled down before the temperature setting on smart thermostats are temporarily adjusted higher
EV chargers: The power to the EV charger is temporarily reduced to 1kW
EVs: The power to the EV is temporarily reduced to 0kW
Water heaters: The heating will stop temporarily, water heater will maintain the water temperature by using its insulation
Home batteries: AutoGrid will charge your battery to 100% in the morning of any DR events and then power your home from the battery during the DR event - your battery will not go below its reserves level (typically 20%)

21. What data will I be sharing if I participate in this program and how will my data be stored?

Once you agree to share your meter data as part of the enrollment process, you will authorize AutoGrid to be your Demand Response Provider (DRP). As a result, AutoGrid will have access to some of your utility information, including the customer name associated with the account, the service address, rate schedule, meter type, electric usage, billing data, and if you are enrolled in a utility demand response program. These data will be kept in a secure location according to Fair Information Practices as prescribed by the California Public Utility Commission (CPUC) guidelines. For more information on the DRP authorization process and data protocols, refer to the CPUC website here. For more information, please review AutoGrid’s privacy policy.

How many DR events will there be and how long are the events?

25. How will I be notified when Power Hours occur?

Smart thermostat participants will be notified no later than one hour before the start of each Power Hour (energy reduction event) except in cases of a grid emergency as declared by the state or utility. The notification will be via the smart thermostat’s smart phone app and/or via the smart thermostat’s display.

EV charger participants will be notified via your car charger’s smartphone app and/or via an email from AutoGrid.
EV participants (car only) will be notified via an email from AutoGrid when an Event has been scheduled.
If you are participating without a smart device, not using any smart devices, or are participating with your battery or water heater, AutoGrid will contact you via email or smart phone text messages to manually reduce your electricity usage.