About SDG&E’s DRET Program

San Diego Gas and Electric’s (SDG&E) Demand Response Emerging Technologies (DRET) program focuses on the challenging area of demand reducing technologies and strategies with a focus on approaches best for the San Diego region. In today’s evolving market and changing policy landscape, the opportunity for creative, innovative, and cost-effective demand response solutions has never been greater. Therefore, SDG&E’s DRET Program staff research companies and technologies that promise significant demand reduction potential in the short or mid-term time horizon. The SDG&E DRET program also seeks to identify technologies that mirror the changes throughout its Demand Response Program portfolio such as Fast DR or Ancillary DR, Integrated Demand Side Management (IDSM) technologies, technologies that aid full market integration (D.13-12-024), permanent load shifting technologies, and technologies that enhance the ratepayer value to the Technology Incentive (TI) Program. Each evaluation project will address at least the following, but not limited to:

The technology’s or strategy’s overall merits;
Applicability to existing SDG&E customer programs;
Benefits to both demand reduction and energy efficiency;
Possible adoption barriers;
Cost-effectiveness per the updated E3 DR calculator (D.15-11-042) when applicable;
Risks; and
Recommendation on the utilities’ support and future involvement.

The program’s evaluation projects may include techniques and methods that may not be exclusively technology driven. The emphasis of each project will vary on case by case basis, and may include:

Technology Assessments
Scaled Field Placements
Demonstration Showcases
Technology Development
Business Incubation
Market / Behavior Studies

Technologies or strategies found to be viable may subsequently be integrated into existing utility programs or become the basis for new programs in support of market introduction.