Utilities Achieve Record Peak Energy AI-Powered Demand Reduction with Oracle

 Opower programs helped deliver 1 gigawatt of demand reduction this year, providing critical resources for grid reliability through virtual power plants while helping customers reduce energy bills 

Enhancements extend year-round event support and add customer segmentation, helping utilities increase peak reduction performance

AUSTIN, Texas, Nov. 11, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Utilities using Oracle Opower have achieved record year-to-date peak energy demand reduction in North America. Oracle Opower programs activated across more than 70 winter and summer events, delivering 1 gigawatt (GW) of demand reduction, helped utilities maintain grid reliability and manage peak electricity demand more affordably for millions of residents across the United States. Through behavioral demand response (BDR) and peak time rebates (PTR) programs, Opower enabled utilities to expand participation in their virtual power plant (VPP) and demand response efforts to a broader range of customers, including those without connected devices. 

By encouraging customers to reduce or shift electricity use during peak demand periods, Oracle's AI- and behavioral science-powered programs help utilities tap into flexible capacity across their customer base and promote distributed energy resource (DER) adoption while helping customers lower their energy bills. For example, showing a customer that shifting air conditioning use by 15 minutes could save them money during a peak event, and then following up with how their household performed, is far more compelling than a generic request to use less power. With Opower PTR programs, utility customers can also earn monetary incentives when they reduce their energy use during peak events. 

Top highlights achieved in 2026 include:

• Oracle delivered 1 GW of demand reduction, the equivalent to more than 3 Fredonia Generation Stations in Washington state — "peaker" power plants that provide backup electricity during demand surges
• Oracle helped utilities reduce peak demand by delivering a record 73 events across winter and summer seasons, an increase of nearly 50% compared to 49 total events in 2025
• Utilities achieved an average peak savings of 16,592 kilowatts (kW) per event — equivalent to meeting the peak demand from 4,150 homes*
• 4.3 million customers were engaged, an increase of 30% compared to 3.3 million in 2025, demonstrating the rapidly growing reach and accessibility of these programs

Utilities' record-breaking results
Puget Sound Energy (PSE), a Washington state investor-owned utility serving 6,000 square miles primarily in Western Washington, has successfully incorporated BDR into its VPP approach. Today, the utility's Flex Events BDR program with Oracle has grown to represent a significant customer-facing facet of its set of load flexibility solutions as part of a broader VPP strategy. Utilizing customer communication channels, including text messaging, interactive voice calls, and email, the Flex Event program has driven statistically significant peak load reduction of up to 16.6 MW per event during three successive seasons of deployment.

Earlier this year, PSE adjusted its Flex Events program to include a bill credit of $0.50/kWh in addition to behavioral messaging, giving customers a further incentive to reduce usage during peak events. "This summer we introduced performance-based incentives to our behavioral opt-out program, Peak Time Savings, to broaden access to the benefits of demand response and provide customers with a more direct reward for taking action during demand response events," said Tom Smith, Supervisor for Demand Response for Puget Sound Energy. "We're excited to continue partnering with Oracle to design customer-focused solutions that are easy to participate in, reduce barriers to engagement, and deliver meaningful value to the people we serve."

CPS Energy, the nation's largest public power, natural gas, and electric company serving San Antonio and portions of seven adjoining counties, also achieved record-breaking results this summer, with more than one-third of nearly a million customers participating in BDR events. CPS Energy added, "We want everyone in our community to benefit from reducing peak demand. Oracle's Behavioral Demand Response brings more than 350,000 customers of all backgrounds into our Virtual Power Plant. We called 12 events this summer, reaching nearly 19 megawatts during the month of August."

Year-round program enhancements
Earlier this year, Oracle expanded its BDR and PTR programs to support year-round events, giving utilities the opportunity to replicate summer successes before, during, and after winter storms hit. As many regions of the country move closer to dual peaking or winter peaking grid demand, this functionality will help utilities respond accordingly. Opower's solutions also now allow utilities to simultaneously target different customer segments with different messaging or product variations, ensuring each customer gets the right communication for them. 

"Behavioral demand response and peak time rebates are growing pillars of demand reduction," said Matt O'Keefe, group vice president and head of Opower, Oracle. "These programs give utilities more ways to deepen savings, reward customers, and contribute to virtual power plants that draw on the participation of entire communities. Expanding these programs means more households can share in the savings while helping keep the grid reliable."

*Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) data, 2026

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Contact Info      
Brent Curry
Oracle PR for Utilities
[email protected] 

SOURCE Oracle