About this event
Addressing renewable energy intermittency while meeting net zero emissions targets requires achieving flexibility in electricity demand. In a randomized control trial, we offer urban Indian households simple Wi-Fi-enabled smart switches that control an appliance. We trigger automated switch-off events rewarding participants per unit of energy they avoid consuming during the event. We find that switch-off events lead to a 60% reduction in appliance-level electricity usage and an 8.5% reduction in household-level electricity use during the event, with the load reduction effect being higher in hours that experience peak electricity demand. A comparison of household and device-level electricity consumption measurements indicates no evidence of leakage, where users might shift their electricity usage to other appliances not linked to the smart device. We find no evidence of load shifting effects on average implying that switch-offs reduce total consumption. Using new estimates of marginal emission factors as well as high-resolution generation cost data, we find that optimally timed and automated switch-offs could lead to meaningful emission reductions at low or even negative cost. We are also designing a follow-up study to test alternative incentive structures and fixed vs AI-driven dynamic load control algorithms on smart switch adoption and usage.
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This event will take place in SAL 2.04, 2nd Floor Conference Room, Sir Arthur Lewis Building, LSE, 32 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London WC2A 3PH.
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