Are regulations enough to expand industrial demand response? A study of the impacts of policy on industrial demand response in the United States

As resource mixes in the United States change, a need emerges for techniques like demand response to enhance grid reliability and utilize renewable energy sources more efficiently. Demand response in the industrial sector has lagged behind the residential and commercial sectors but has underutilized potential to benefit the grid. This work surveys U.S. Federal policy from the last twenty years to analyze the mandates and effects on industrial demand response. Policies involving industrial demand response have been vague and abstract when considering the unique energy challenges the industrial sector faces. Future policy concerning demand response should offer specific directives and tools to help industrial facilities and end-users integrate demand response techniques into their processes.