When you enroll your business, in PeakChoice, you choose the options that make sense for your business to temporarily reduce electricity on-demand, yet not negatively impact the way you do business or serve your customers. When a demand response event occurs, you will be notified, by email, phone, FAX or pager, to take temporary action to reduce your energy use.

The PeakChoice operating season runs from May 1 to October 31.

At the end of each season, you can work with your PG&E account representative to adjust your options for the next season and decide to change from PeakChoice Best Effort to PeakChoice Committed (or vice versa). If you have made no program changes, you will automatically be re-enrolled with your PeakChoice options from the prior season.

Both programs have unique features and incentives.

PeakChoice Committed is ideal for any business that can reduce its demand with great predictability, has an Energy Management System in place, or is well versed in participating in a demand response program.

PeakChoice Best Effort is great for companies that are new to demand response programs or have unpredictable electric demand. Best Effort is also a great choice for businesses that want to try out PeakChoice and determine the best fit.

Take the PeakChoice test drive or talk to your PG&E representative to determine which option is best for your business.

You don't have to make big changes to make a big impact. Even simple steps such as temporarily turning off the lights in empty offices, turning off the fountain in the atrium or temporarily raising the temperature in unoccupied parts of your office can all add up to significant reductions when thousands of businesses participate. See tips for reducing your demand and then sign up for PeakChoice to earn rewards for your efforts.

Is our company guaranteed monthly payments as a Committed program participant?
Yes. As a PeakChoice Committed participant, you will receive a guaranteed monthly incentive, even if no PeakChoice events occur. In return, you agree to always respond when called upon based on the program options you’ve selected. If your business is not able to meet the agreed upon demand reductions, your total incentive will be adjusted with a non-performance penalty.

Based on your selections (notification, number of events, etc.), you determine the amount of your custom PeakChoice monthly incentive. When you are called to participate in events, you are paid $0.15/kWh for each hour you deliver at least 50 percent of your committed demand. Take the PeakChoice test drive or talk to your PG&E representative to review the specifics for your business.

As a PeakChoice Best Effort participant, you make no guaranteed commitment to reduce your electricity consumption when PG&E makes a request. If you are able to respond and confirm your participation in a PeakChoice event, your business will be paid for 50 percent to 150 percent of your confirmed and delivered reduction. Take the PeakChoice test drive or talk to your PG&E representative to review the specifics for your business.

PeakChoice is a voluntary demand response program with two levels of participation—PeakChoice Committed and PeakChoice Best Effort. There are no penalties for Best Effort participants. Companies that select the Committed option receive a guaranteed monthly payment for agreeing to always respond in the event they are called on to reduce their demand. These commitments are used for planning purposes and factor into PG&E planning and electricity demand analysis. So if the commitments are not met, there could be a shortage in supply for all. If a PeakChoice Committed business is not able to fulfill its commitment, penalties are assessed to compensate for the higher priced electricity that had to be purchased to bring supply up to meet demand.

Small steps can make a big difference. This can be as simple as temporarily turning down the air conditioner or unplugging your coffee makers.

No. It may be easier for you to participate in PeakChoice events if you have an EMS, but it is not required. Many customers participate in demand response programs without an EMS; it just may take some extra staff coordination.

On the other hand, many modern EMS systems can accommodate pre-programmed settings, such as adjusting the lighting and temperature at all your buildings, during PeakChoice events.