HomeMy WebLinkAboutMemo - Mail Packet - 4/3/2018 - Memorandum From John Phelan Re: Leadership Planning Team Request - Demand Response With Platte River Power AuthorityUtilities
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Fort Collins, CO 80522
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V/TDD 711
utilities@fcgov.com
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M E M O R A N D U M
DATE: March 29, 2017
TO: Mayor Troxell and Councilmembers
FROM: John Phelan, Energy Services Manager
THROUGH: Darin Atteberry, City Manager
Kevin R. Gertig, Utilities Executive Director
Jeff Mihelich, Deputy City Manager
RE: Leadership Planning Team Request – Demand Response with Platte River Power
Authority
This memo is in response to the March 26 Leadership Planning Team request regarding:
Peak Notification Pilot Project – Staff is asked to provide Council with information on
whether there is coordination with Platte River Power Authority on this item. How does
this fit into distributed energy overall?
Demand Response Services – Staff is asked to include information on how we are
working with Platte River Power Authority on this item.
Bottom Line
Fort Collins Utilities manages the Peak Partners demand response program, which includes
residential thermostats, electric hot water heaters and commercial businesses. Utilities and Platte
River have jointly operated a pilot project using the residential resources of Peak Partners since
July 2017. The purpose of the pilot is to explore how demand response could be operated by
Platte River to provide benefits to the overall system.
A second, and independent, demonstration project is the Peak Notification Pilot project. This
effort will create a customer service tool which can be used by commercial customers to manage
demand during coincident peak periods. The project is supported by a grant from the American
Public Power Association and Platte River is aware of and supportive of the project.
Summary
Demand Response Pilot
In July 2017 Platte River Power Authority and Fort Collins Utilities initiated a pilot program in
which Platte River operators could activate the Fort Collins Utilities residential demand response
resource (electric water heaters and air conditioners). The conditions upon which the resource is
activated are based upon integrated electric grid value, rather than rate differential value as Fort
Collins Utilities has been doing since 1982.
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In the first 9 months of the pilot, Platte River has activated the resource for a total of nine events,
most of them during the summer months. The reasons for the activation varied from
advantageous energy market prices, to a sudden drop of wind power to an unscheduled outage at
the Craig power station. Platte River and Staff are currently reviewing the early lessons learned
from the pilot and considering an extension to the initial 12-month period of the pilot.
Peak Notification Pilot Project
The American Public Power Association (APPA) maintains an ongoing research and
development grant program titled Demonstration of Energy & Efficiency Developments
(DEED). Fort Collins Utilities succeeded in receiving DEED grant approval for a project titled
“Peak Load Notification Pilot”.
Fort Collins Utilities utilizes a coincident peak rate structure for large commercial customers. To
help customers save on the coincident peak charge of their bill, this project will provide new
technological tools and educational outreach. The technological component involves creating an
IFTTT (If This Then That) channel to allow end users to easily create custom conditional
programs to automate actions and responses based on triggers defined by Fort Collins Utilities.
The educational component involves identifying and educating staff within an organization who
control large amounts of energy. A visible example of a response using a WiFi enabled IFTTT
compatible RGB LED bulb that responds to the IFTTT trigger will be provided as part of the
educational program.
While this project is independent of the Peak Partners program, it is anticipated that lessons
learned from this project could be helpful for future DER or DR programs and that the IFTTT
channel that will be created as part of this pilot could be expanded to serve residential customers
with Time of Day rates.
CC: Lisa Rosintoski, Customer Connections Manager
Tim McCollough, Light and Power Operations Manager
Pablo Bauleo, Senior Energy Services Engineer
Lucas Mouttet, Customer Accounts Manager
Philip Tucker, Key Accounts Representative
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