Sunrun’s CalReady virtual power plant, operated under the California Energy Commission’s Demand Side Grid Support Program, will participate in over 16,200 residential solar-plus-storage systems this summer. This participation is nearly double that of Sunrun’s first-of-its-kind VPP pilot with PG&E last year. Despite this, Sunrun CEO Chris Rauscher believes that any utility today can participate in VPP programs. He also highlighted the need for simpler, more customer-friendly VPPs. Financial incentive programs like CalReady or ConnectedSolutions could encourage customer participation in VP programs. Additionally, state policy can influence VPP adoption, with California’s solar attachment rate increasing from 10% to 60% after the state implemented its storage-friendly NEM 3.0 net energy metering tariff in April 2023.
Solar Dominates US Energy Capacity Growth
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has published data showing that solar accounted for over 75% of US electrical generating
