Tracking report
Demand Response
Tracking progress 2020
Demand response
Like other forms of traditional flexibility, demand-side flexibility is largely centralised and restricted to large industrial or commercial consumers.
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The number of digitally connected energy-related devices has been growing exponentially. As more systems digitalise and more connected devices are deployed, opportunities to increase consumer participation in energy systems are expanding, including through demand response, electric vehicle charging and behind-the-meter generation and storage.
In addition, tapping into further flexibility through numerous small-scale devices ('deep' demand-side flexibility) can increase the overall capacity of the system to host variable renewables while accelerating the electrification of heating, cooling, transport and industry at lower costs.
In addition, tapping into further flexibility through numerous small-scale devices ('deep' demand-side flexibility) can increase the overall capacity of the system to host variable renewables while accelerating the electrification of heating, cooling, transport and industry at lower costs.
Last updated Aug 27, 2020
Key findings
Demand response potential in the Sustainable Development Scenario, 2018-2040
OpenA mixed year for demand-response technology
2019 was a mixed year for demand-response technology. Deployment increased across the United States and Australia, as well as in some European markets. However, regulatory uncertainty in key European jurisdictions, and strategic shifts on the part of important market participants increasingly trying to consolidate their energy service and product offerings, have dampened the DR outlook. Global capacity of all forms of demand-side flexibility expanded 5% year-on-year in 2019, which is ten times lower than the level required in the SDS.
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Our work
The Users TCP’s mission is to provide evidence from socio-technical research on the design, social acceptance and usability of clean energy technologies to inform policy making for clean, efficient and secure energy transitions. Decarbonisation, decentralisation and digitalisation are embedding energy technologies in the heart of our communities. Communities’ response to these changes and use of energy technologies will determine the success of our energy systems. Poorly designed energy policies, and technologies that do not satisfy users’ needs, lead to ‘performance gaps’ that are both energy and economically inefficient. User-centred energy systems are therefore critical for delivering socially and politically acceptable energy transitions.
