Considerations for Commercial Building Participation in a Transactive Energy System

With transactive energy (TE), commercial customers have the potential to provide flexibility to the electricity grid by shifting electricity demand to avoid high-priced periods. The characteristics of commercial buildings and end uses are explored to determine factors supporting the feasibility of participation in a TE system. The key factors of commercial buildings that affect the potential benefits of participating in a TE system are the ownership and lease arrangement, the perceived impact of occupant comfort on worker productivity and customer sales, the state of buildings and equipment or the readiness of the buildings, and in some cases the additional standards in place that are unique to commercial settings. These characteristics will affect the commercial customer's ability to adjust the timing of electricity consumption and benefit from a TE system.