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If you don't have surge pricing you have shortages. The only reason for the surge is supply doesn't meet demand. If you keep the price the same, people will bu
by ars 3y ago
If you don't have surge pricing you have shortages. The only reason for the surge is supply doesn't meet demand.
If you keep the price the same, people will buy until there's none left. And then you are in worse shape than if you had the surge pricing.
With surge pricing people will switch on extra (expensive) supply because it's worth it, or they'll sit in the dark to avoid having to pay a high bill.
You can do what you say: Encourage people to cut usage, and in fact Texas did that a while, and everyone with such an electricity contract enjoyed the cheaper prices, until there was a surge and they were shut off.
People decided that that was worse and now such contracts in residencies are rare.
All your suggestions have been tried and found to be worse at the end. Surge pricing is the best option available. Mostly because it leads to more supply, and that's the ultimate solution.
- Dylan16807 3y agoThat's the texas grid method. Many other grids directly pay for spare capacity all year long, instead of paying entirely via pricing spikes. You might still need some surge pricing under such a model, but it's a lot less intense.
- michaelmrose 3y agoIf it's really better how come virtually nobody on the planet actually buys electricity that way on the consumer level and people who aren't Texans manage to keep the lights on?
- ars 3y agoNot sure where you are getting your data. A 2 second google search finds https://www.dsoelectric.com/interruptible-residential-rate https://www.dsoelectric.com/interruptible-residential-rate in Kansas. Google "Interruptible Residential Rate" and you'll see it's quite common. Sometimes done with 2 meters: An interruptible one for heat pumps and a regular one to everything else. I'm actually pretty sure it's available in basically all states - they often list it as "pay a cheaper rate, and let the utility control your thermostat in times of high demand". Go check - you might find it's available to you as well. And BTW, Texas has a better track record than California on keeping the lights on. They've had a single major power outage caused by high demand. California on the other hand..... The reason they have a reputation in your mind is the same reason people make fun of Florida: They are very open with their data, so you know more about it.